Sisters of the Heart
by SimetratheHunter
Summary: McKenna is your average daughter of Athena with bigger than average problems. Her adoptive sister is missing, her half sister hates her, her human dad is kidnapped, and her best friend Percy is blamed for stealing Zeus's Masterbolt. How can this possibly get worse?
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Riordan does. **

Chapter 1: The First Human Popsicle

Alaska, the place outside the realm of the gods, is a dangerous place to be. Monsters roam free, the bitter wind stings the skin from every direction, and the hard ice needles mercilessly blinds any one who is foolish enough to travel in such a weather. But McKenna is not a fool. She could not be since she was a daughter of Athena, goddess of wisdom and battle strategy. Her semi-long brown hair whips around in the wind as the twelve year old marches on. The only sound that can be heard is the slight crunch of her snow boots breaking the frosty ice beneath them. McKenna is by no means suicidal. She is one of the happiest people you will ever meet. No, she is not in Alaska, outside of her mother's protection, for nothing. She is out here for her sister. Her older sister Althea had gone missing when she had been dragged off by monsters at the foot of half-blood hill. That was 4 years ago, and McKenna had just received news of the quick melting of a massive glacier in Alaska. At first, she paid no heed, but a satyr, Grover, came back saying that he smelled a godling in the ice, deep in the ice. That is why McKenna is out in 10 degree weather. Althea had been captured years ago because of her reckless desire to get to Camp Half-Blood as soon as possible. She ignored the limp in Althea's leg, and Althea never said anything about it. She just kept walking with her sister as the infection in her leg grew. Most people would loose their leg because of an infection of that size, but Althea is a daughter of Apollo, god of medicine, so she used as much of her strength to fight the infection. She was too weak to fight off the horde of hell hounds that came after them. Their guardian, Forest, was killed, and Althea dragged away. McKenna was only 8 at the time, and her sister 10. Now, she is willing to go through whatever means to get Althea back. Grover had to get back to his normal guardian job so McKenna is on her own. "Althea, hold on. I'm coming." she whispers hoarsely, her voice sounding weak, but the fire in her blue-grey eyes showed otherwise.

Crack! The ice beneath her shook, forcing her to her knees as a large cavern opens up next to her. From her position on her knees, McKenna can see down into the cavern. What she sees shocks her. There, embedded in the ice, is her sister Althea. There's only one thing though, she hasn't aged a day. She's still 10. Shaking her head, she carefully pulls out the climbing gear that she had..."barrowed" from the Stoll brothers at camp and secures the line to firm ice not too far away. then, making her way to the edge, she slowly climbs down. As she starts to get deeper, she can feel the heat radiantly off of Althea. As a last resort, all Apollo children can go into a state of hibernation where they keep their body heat very high to warm up their surrounds enough to make a difference. That way, people can find them. Gently breaking the ice away bit by bit, McKenna feels warmer than she had felt above the walls of ice.

Splash! The pieces of ice fall into the icy river far below as McKenna slowly but surely frees her sister from her icy prison. Althea's eyes flutter open, revealing dark brown eyes speckled with gold flakes. Her black locks are frozen around her but there's a pocket of warm air surrounding her like a cocoon. "McKenna," Althea whispers, her voice weak from 4 years worth of hibernation. "Move away." McKenna doesn't even hesitate before she shifts out of the way. Using the last remains of her energy, Althea melts the ice around her, turning it into vapor. Afterwards, she falls forward into her sister's arms and is carried back to the top. McKenna wraps several jackets around her sister as the heat from her body begins to die down back to normal.

"Althea, you have to stay awake with me, okay?" McKenna whispers urgently, wrapping her sister tightly in two layers of coats.

"Hmm." is the only reply she could get out of Althea as she struggles to stay awake. The 12 year old prays to her mother for the strength she needs to make it to the Canadian border just a mile away. Lord Apollo promised to meet her there once she got back.

The mile stretched on for what seemed like an eternity, and McKenna had to let her drowsy sister stumble next to her for the last quarter because she was afraid that she would collapse. The energy Athena had given her is wearing out. "Are we there yet?" asks her younger sister softly. (Since McKenna is now 2 years older than Althea, might as well be her older sister.)

"Althea! McKenna!" Before they can blink, they are wrapped in the Sun god's warm, strong arms.

"Daddy." Althea happily mumbles into his shirt. Apollo smiles gently at his daughter and promptly places the two of them in his sun car.

"I'll get you to camp in no time." he promises, taking off into the skies. Althea immediately falls asleep in the warm car, and McKenna is tempted to take a short nap herself. "McKenna," The said girl opens her blue eyes to look at the Sun god's glowing brown ones. "Thank you for rescuing Althea." McKenna smiles widely and sighs.

"You're not the only one who cares about her you know." With that, she fell asleep.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I don't own Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Riordan does. **

Chapter 2: Bull Fighting with a Stranger

As Apollo gently places his sun car at the edge of a cliff, Althea and McKenna hop out. Thanking him in Greek, they briskly walk towards the boundary of the camp, knowing that the monsters will come if they don't hurry. The moment the sun god's car leaves, the wind and rain from the surrounding storm picks up and whips the two girls hair around like blades of grass. "Come on, Althea, hop on my back, and I'll get us to camp quickly." McKenna says over the roar of the storm, kneeling down.

At that moment, the area shakes with a deafening roar. Glancing once at each other, the two sisters bolt towards the sound. There, in a clearing, which just so happens to be the same clearing that Althea was captured in, is a boy about McKenna's age with bark brown hair, almost black, and sea green eyes standing in front of a huge Minotaur...in its underpants. "I have been scarred for life." McKenna mutters before seeing a family fuzzy hair peeking out from behind a bush. "Grover!" Althea clamps her hand over McKenna's mouth a little too late. The Minotaur turns its beady red eyes to them and charges.

"Get away from my sister!" Althea screams, holding out her hand. A blinding flash sends the bull reeling away, roaring in agony. The boy's eyes widen at the sight of the bull's steaming fur and smoking eyes. Althea's bow materializes in her hand before she turns to her sister, who has her trusty sword in hand and her dagger at her hip.

"Let's do this like old times." McKenna says with a weak smile, remembering too well what happened at this place. Althea nods and gives her the best smile she could before firing arrows at 3 arrows every 5 seconds. McKenna surges forward underneath the rain of arrows and slashes open the bull chest. Sadly, the boy is in the way so McKenna has to shove him out of the way which gets her into the gasp of a very angry bull. "Arg!" McKenna groans through gritted teeth. The bull's hands are almost crushing the bones in her arms.

"Hey!" Althea calls to the boy, who turns towards her. "You've got to help me. I'll distract the thing while you save my sister." The boy blinks, still in a state of shock. Althea's brown eyes glow with desperation and determination. "Please, I can't lose my sister." That statement seems to snap the boy back to reality, and he nods. Gathering what little energy she has left, Althea wraps herself in a glowing aura that keeps her warm and dry. "Yo, Ugly! Next time you leave the Underworld wear more clothes! You can seriously scar some innocent children out here!" she screams at the top of her lungs, which is really loud. The Minotaur roars and chases after the glowing figure like how a dog would chase a firefly. The boy takes a deep breath and takes a running leap. The water of the surrounding storm form a small swirling platform, unnoticed by the boy as he jumps up. With the extra lift, he is able to land right on top of the bull. Pulling with all his might, he rips the horn clean off the bull's head, forcing the creature to clutch his head in agony and drop McKenna. McKenna immediately dives out of the way of the stumbling creature, but the boy jumps off and rams the horn into the Minotaur's side, just underneath his rib cage, turning the thing into dust in a matter of seconds. Panting, he remains kneeling in the rain as McKenna slowly make her way towards him. Placing a gentle hand on his shoulder, she gives him a tired smile.

"Come on. Let's get you into some place warm." she says softly, getting a slow nod from the exhausted and distraught boy. Althea comes over, dragging Grover by his furry legs.

"What's your name?" she asks gently, gives him a small smile. The boy hesitates before croaking out,

"Percy Jackson."

"I'm McKenna Brooks, and this is my sister, Althea Brooks." McKenna replies helping the boy up before grabbing Grover's arms and hefting him up. "Let's go. Camp's just a few steps away."

~*~*~ I'm an annoying page break. 0_o' *~*~*

Percy groans softly, sitting up in his bed. A dizziness swarms his brain, turning it into mush temporarily. sitting next to his bed is Grover, holding a shoebox tightly. "Grover." Percy croaks, his throat extremely dry. His best friend jumps and immediately hands him a cup of what looks like apple juice. The minute the drink is in his mouth, Percy realizes that it tastes just like his mom's blue chocolate chip cookies. Percy sighs contentedly as he finishes the last of the wonderful draught.

"What does it taste like?" Grover asks softly, looking at him worriedly. Percy looks down guilty.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't know you wanted some." Grover jumps as if shocked.

"What? No, no, no! That stuff with burn my insides into ash!" Percy blinks before his shoulders slump and he places his head in his hands.

"Yesterday, it really happened, didn't it." he moans. Grover sighs and lets out a pitiful bleat.

"It's all my fault. I always fail." he wails mournfully.

"No you don't, Grover." a voice says from the door way. The black-haired girl from last night walks in a sits on the edge of Percy's bed. "Your sense of smell lead my sister to me when she had been captured by hell hounds."

"That's different, Althea." Grover whimpers back. Percy looks at her confused. She couldn't have been the same girl from last night. This little girl's only 10 at the most, and he didn't know of any 10 year olds who could shoot arrows like that or glow. She turns to Percy with the same brown eyes that pleaded with him last night. "How are you holding up?" she asks concerned. Percy shrugs.

"Alright, I guess." he mutters. The small smile on her face disappears.

"I'm sorry about your mom." she says softly, her eyes saying that she knows how it feels.

"How did..." Before he could even finish his question, he is interrupted by a tall, pretty, blonde girl with her hair in princess curls.

"You talk in your sleep." she states frankly before turning to Althea. "You and your sister need to get to your classes." A slight frown flickers across Althea's face, but she quickly covers it and smiles at the three of them before leaving.

Chapter 3: Sticking Together

Percy makes his way around camp with Annabeth by his side telling him about everything. His face turns red at all the whispers and pointed fingers at his Minotaur horn. Annabeth just stares it and states,

"You drool in your sleep." That didn't help Percy's nervousness at all. Stepping into a large blue house, he spies his teacher, Mr. Brunner, sitting at a table playing with a rather...large man drinking Diet Coke.

"Mr. Brunner!" Percy gasps, jogging up to his former teacher as Annabeth walks off. The aging man looks up and smiles at the young demigod jogging towards him.

"Percy! I'm glad you made it. Come and play Pinochle with us."

"Shouldn't the brat ask me first, Chiron?" asks the large man lazily, glancing at Percy with eyes the color of wine. They seriously freaked Percy out. Mr. Brunner sighs tiredly.

"Percy, this is the camp head, Mr. D." he says while stepping out of his wheelchair to reveal his horse parts. Percy's jaw drops, and he just stands there blinking.

"Um..."

"Percy, you remember the Greek myths I taught you in class don't you?" Mr. Brunner asks gently, leading Percy to a chair next to him. Percy nods slowly. "Well, they are not myths. The Greek gods are very much alive, and one of them is your father."

"What?!" Percy exclaims jumping out of his seat. Mr. Brunner raises his hand for silence.

"I know it's a lot to take in, but it is true. Your ADHD kept you alive in that fight with the Minotaur."

"No, McKenna and Althea did." Percy interjects shaking his head.

"That is very kind of you, but before they came, your instincts kept you alive, and don't deny it." Percy sighs in defeats and slumps into his seat.

"So, you're saying that Althea and McKenna are daughters of gods too?" Percy asks, his head spinning. Mr. Brunner nods solemnly.

"They are. They had dyslexia just like you since their minds are meant to read Ancient Greek." Percy takes a deep breath and slowly processes this.

"So, that's why weird things keep happening to me, like how I straggled a snake to death when I was five. And my dad is up there doing godly stuff and doesn't have time for me?" Mr. Brunner shakes his head sympathetically.

"No, Percy. I bet your father would love to spend time with you, but if the gods did so, they would forget their responsibilities, and chaos would erupt."

"Who is my father then?" asks Percy hopefully. The only fatherly figure he ever had was Gabe, but the horrid blob of a man was no father to him at all.

"We don't know. That is why you are going to stay in the Hermes cabin until you are claimed." Mr. Brunner replies. Percy nods and looks at his former teachers hooves.

"Um, you're not THE Chiron from the myths are you?" he asks tentatively.

"Yes, I am."

"But...but you're supposed to be dead!" Percy yelps, getting confused again.

"The gods have kept me alive so I can do the job I love, train young heroes, like you." Chiron says kindly, causing Percy to smile. Maybe this place isn't so bad.

"Since Annabeth as gone off to who knows where, you're going to have to find the cabin yourself." Mr. D says waving his hand for another Diet Coke, but a golden cup of wine appears. Thunder rumbles ominously from above, causing Mr. D to yelp and turn the goblet into a Diet Coke. "Sorry!" he shouts to the sky. "Force of habit!" Percy stares at the head of camp with wide eyes.

"You're Dionysus." Chiron shifts nervously.

"Don't use names Percy. They have power."

"But..." Percy protests, his brain almost to explosion point.

"Percy, trust me. They have power." He whirls around to see McKenna leaning on the door frame. "I've had bad experiences with names." Percy consents before sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck.

"Um...do you know where the Hermes cabin is?" he asks very embarrassed. McKenna laughs and extends her hand out to him.

"Come on. Althea's already getting your stuff to the cabin. I'm going to start your training." she says grinning, a mischievous glint in her bluish grey eyes. Percy takes the hand without hesitation, and they wave good-bye to Chiron and Mr. D before making their way through the U of cabins. "Has my dear sister told you about the cabins yet?" McKenna asks sarcastically. Percy looks confused.

"Annabeth did. I haven't seen Althea all day."

"Annabeth's my half-sister biologically. Althea's my legal sister." Percy looks at her with his confused sea eyes that have a tendency to change shade often. "Okay, you already know about the gods, right?" Percy nods. "Well, everyone in the same cabin are half brothers or sisters. I'm a daughter of Athena, just like Annabeth. We just have different dads." Percy nods, understanding.

"Wow, that was much simpler than I thought." he says with a grin. McKenna grins backs and strikes a poise.

"I know. I'm such an amazing teacher." Percy laughs as Althea walks up to them.

"If McKenna's teaching here, I'm moving to California." she says teasingly. McKenna pouts and huffs at her little sister.

"You don't have to be so mean." she whines, causing Percy and Althea to laugh. After the bout of laughter dies down, Percy turns to the two sisters.

"So, is Althea a daughter of Athena too?" Both girls faces darkened considerably. Before Percy realizes what's going on, he's being dragged by both of them into a forest where they are going to play Capture the Flag in three days. "Whoa! What's going on?" Percy asks, as Althea stares at the creek in front of them and McKenna shifts from foot to foot.

"You can't tell anyone, okay?" McKenna whispers urgently. Percy nods, his face grim. "Alright, Althea's the daughter of Apollo, so by blood we're not related." McKenna begins, glancing at Althea to see if she should continue. The said girl stands slowly and turns her sad dark brown eyes towards Percy. They had lost their fire and glow.

"You see, my mother never was very stable." she begins softly. "When she met Apollo, she kind of went all OCD on him, and before he realized what he was doing, she was pregnant with me." Percy remains silent as Althea pats a spot next to her on the creek bank. "When I was one, I looked more like her than I did my father, so she decided to toss me off a cliff."

"WHAT?" Percy shouts indignantly. McKenna promptly clamps a hand over his mouth, effectively silencing him.

"Like I said, my mom's unstable." Althea continues shrugging with difficulty. This is obviously hard for her to tell. "That's when my father saved me and drove in his sun chariot to where she was standing on the cliff. Mom went hysterical in joy when she found out that she's got a super powerful daughter. She asked to marry Apollo, who refused immediately and reluctantly handed me to my mom since he couldn't raise me. My mom huffs and decides to marry someone else to make Apollo jealous. That's when my step dad, Aidan Brooks, comes into the picture. He was a kind, wise, and loyal man who took pity on me. He married my mom to keep her from starving me to death when she would go to long parties into the night. One day, when I was about 1 and half, my mom died in a car crash. My dad was sad, yes, but he wasn't devastated. There was no love in their marriage. A few weeks passed before my dad meet Athena." Percy gasps, glancing from one sister to the next. McKenna decides to take up the story from there.

"My dad instantly feel in love with my mom, and when Althea was 2, I was brought down from Olympus in a grey crib designed with owls. My mom was forced to stay away by Zeus, and my dad was heart broken. He took care of me and Althea on his own till monsters attacked our house, and we had to run away to keep our dad safe." Percy nods slowly, not wanting to intrude but still wanting to know why Althea is younger if she was born first. McKenna as if reading his mind says, "We got into an accident on the way here, and Althea got frozen in time for 4 years." McKenna's voice cracks as she remembers that awful day when the monsters just kept coming without end. Althea gives her sister a tight embrace, and the trio remains silent.

"Why did you tell me this?" Percy asks softly, staring at the two sisters. Althea flinches and buries her face into McKenna's Camp Half Blood T-shirt.

"We...know that you've been through a lot. We demigods need to stick together. Besides, no one else would understand if we told them our story." McKenna says softly. "Especially since Althea's only 10."

Off in the distance a conch sounds. Althea and McKenna stand. "Let's go. It's almost time for lunch." Althea says, her eyes glazed over as if she was hiding something. Percy shrugs it off. They already told him enough. He won't pry. Together, they all walk towards the large open air pavilion in companionable silence.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I don't own Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Riordan does. **

Chapter 3: Capture the Flag

Annabeth, Grover, Percy, McKenna, and Althea are walking side by side as they leave the lunch room. Althea excuses herself to go to her advanced archery class while Grover runs off to water the strawberry plants. Annabeth suddenly gasps and quickly fixes her hair as McKenna snickers behind her hand. Percy looks at them confused. "What?"

"Annabeth's crush Luke is heading this way. He's the head of the Hermes cabin, so be nice." McKenna says grinning before receiving an annoyed punch from her sister. "OW!" she yelps rubbing her arm, glaring at Annabeth. Her glare goes unnoticed as Luke gets within earshot. The said boy is fairly good-looking with sandy blonde hair and blue-grey eyes. He is also rather tall. A dazzling smile lights his face as he greets Annabeth, whose grinning like a fool. Mumbling something darkly in Ancient Greek, McKenna stomps off to find her sister. For some reason, her demigod instincts said that Annabeth and Luke would need her there. Percy looks back and forth as the two childhood friends talked and tries to sneak off after McKenna.

"Percy!" Luke says, clapping him on the shoulder. "How are you enjoying camp?" Percy smiles slightly up at the older boy.

"It's been pretty cool. I was thinking about getting McKenna and Althea to teach me archery." Luke's face darkens at the mention of them, and Annabeth's eyes cloud for a few seconds at the names. Percy tenses at those looks, knowing instantly what McKenna meant when she said that others wouldn't understand.

"If you need archery help, my friend Will Solace would be happy to help you." Luke says, wrapping an arm around Percy's shoulders and leading him back towards the cabins. "Just...don't hang around those girls alright?" Percy frowns and shrugs off Luke's arm.

"Why? They are perfectly normal...well, as normal as a demigod can be, and they saved my life." Percy protests, trying to hide his anger and annoyance. Luke seems unfazed while Annabeth looks annoyed.

"We're trying to help you, Percy!" she hisses. "Those girls are bad luck. Monsters go after them like magnets and metal. That's probably why you were attacked by the Minotaur in the first place! They are bad luck." Percy remains silent, not knowing how to defend his new friends. Just then, a girl with stringy brown hair and a face splashed wildly with freckles saunters up to them. Percy didn't like her one bit.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't the new hero!" she guffaws loudly. Percy snorts and rolls his eyes.

"Look it's the camp's pig!" he says, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "Four words, LOTS of breath mints." He hears Annabeth and Luke chuckle next to him as the girl turns a brilliant shade of red.

"Why you! Listen, punk. There's a little ritual that we do to all the new campers, and you are going to do it too." she growls, grinding her teeth venomously. Grabbing Percy, she drags him to the door of the bathroom with astounding speed. Luke and Annabeth hurry after her.

"Clarisse, put Percy down!" Luke demands calmly, his eyes flashing in annoyance.

"Stay out of this, Scar Face." Clarisse snaps. "This punk needs to know whose boss around here." Clarisse grins maliciously as she tries to shove Percy's head into the putrid smelling, filthy toilet. The inside of his nose burns as the fumes get more and more toxic the closer her gets to the toilet. Then, it happens. There's a tug in the pit of his stomach, and before Clarisse could jump back, the toilet blasts her with filthy water with the power of a fireman's hose. The other appliances come to life and join in the onslaught against the campers. Sinks explode, showers blast like crazy, and Annabeth and Luke are not spared. Percy slowly stands up from his position in front of the toilet. He is completely dry and standing in the only dry circle in the entire area. Luke and Annabeth gasp and sputter, soaked to the bone in sewer water. Percy grins widely as he sees Clarisse and her siblings sprawled in a puddle of stinky mud.

"Gods of Olympus, Percy!" McKenna gasps in-between her laughs. "I walk away from ten minutes, and you explode a bathroom?" Percy blushes in embarrassment but relaxes when McKenna places a hand on his shoulder. "That's the way to start an awesome summer, my friend. Now, let's get out of this horrid place." He follows McKenna out with Luke and Annabeth trudging behind him. Althea is standing outside waiting for them. She shakes her head with a smile on her face before raising a hand. A storm of piping hot winds comes flying out of her palm, quickly drying off Annabeth and Luke.

"You were right, McKenna." Althea says with a smirk. "They did need me here." McKenna and Percy laugh, and the trio walks away as an entire group of campers after to keep Clarisse and the other sons and daughters of Ares away from them.


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians. I just own my OC's, Mckenna and Althea.**

Chapter 4: Capture the Flag

The entire camp is in a bustle Friday morning as the campers rush to the open air pavilion for breakfast. Percy walks calmly with Connor and Travis Stoll up the hill when he person hops on his back. "Arg!" he shouts, stumbling forward, but not falling.

"Piggyback ride!" McKenna says happily, her grey-blue eyes sparkling as she wraps her arms around Percy's neck. Connor and Travis laugh at Percy's predicament before spying Althea standing not to far away, grinning widely. Connor and Travis nod once to each other before they charge the poor ten-year old. Connor swings Anne on his back while Travis pulls out some enchanted winged shoes. The only problem is that the shoes are jinxed to fly into the lake when they are put on. The elder twin forcibly shoves the overly large shoe on Althea's miniature foot before his younger brother lets goof the fuming daughter of Apollo. The shoes send the little girl flying through camp with Althea screaming angrily all the while. McKenna sprints after her sister since she knew that ever since she got out of the ice, she's been afraid of all forms of water.

"Hold on Althea! I'll get you down!" McKenna shouts, trying to grab her airborne sister.

"I would prefer you grab me BEFORE I hit the water." Althea shouts back her voice cracking. Taking out a dagger sized stick from the ground, McKenna chucks the thing at the wing of Althea's left shoe and forces Althea to descend in altitude so she could yank her out of the shoes. The two sisters lay on the ground panting as the Stoll brothers try to sneak past Percy into the pavilion. Sadly, they didn't get the chance to since Althea cast a curse that forces them to speak in bad rhymes and have irresistible desires to dance at random times of the day.

"What just happened dear brother? That child's as angry as Mother." Travis says.

"I couldn't care more. Pranks are what my brain is for." Connor replies back as an annoyed Althea whips out a violin out of nowhere and plays just two notes. Soon, the Stolls are doing the jig into the pavilion with the Brook sisters and Percy following them.

"Remind me not to annoy Althea in any way, shape, or form." Percy mumbles under his breath. McKenna snickers.

"Yeah she's a deadly ten-year old." McKenna says giggling. Percy and Althea roll their eyes.

"Never thought I'd meet one of those." Percy mutters as they walks over to the Hermes table.

As the day draws to a close, Percy walks around with McKenna getting camps to join their team for capture the flag. The first cabin they went to was the Hermes cabin of course. "Since there are some many undetermined, there's a chance we'll get a powerful demigod, like the Supreme Lord of the Bathroom." McKenna explains as they leave the cabin. Percy groans and blushes red.

"Would you stop bringing that up?"

"Maybe after a couple of months." McKenna replies happily, skipping off to her sister's cabin. Althea is making a new quiver next to the window. Tossing a rock, McKenna effectively bangs the glass, causing Althea to open the window.

"Capture the Flag is tonight, are you game?" McKenna asks, confident that her sister would agree. Althea shakes her head sadly.

"Sorry, the Apollo cabin leader has a grudge against the Athena cabin leader. I have to be on Ares's side." McKenna gasps before groaning loudly.

"Aw come on!" In the end, Athena had Hermes, Hephaestus, and Demeter on their team while Ares had Apollo, Dionysus, Aphrodite, and the kids of other minor gods. The camp rushes to the woods where everyone buckles their armor on and gets their weapons. Percy frowns at the oddly weighted sword in his hands.

"It's the best one we've got for you, Seaweed Brain." Percy whirls around to see Annabeth standing behind him. "You're on border patrol. Stay near the creek and make sure no one gets by." Percy nods.

"Alright, I can do that." Annabeth gives him a smile.

"Sure you can. Even a Seaweed Brain like you can figure that one out." Percy smiles and extends his hand.

"I think we got off on the wrong start. I'm Percy Jackson." Annabeth gives his hand a firm shake.

"I'm Annabeth Chase, daughter of Athena. Pleasure to meet you."

The conch sounds loudly, and Percy hurries to his position. He plants his feet on the ground as he see Luke, Annabeth, and McKenna branch off from the main attackers and slink through the shadows. Percy's ADHD is making it hard to stay focused. Thankfully, Clarisse chooses that moment to burst from the trees. "Well, well, well, if it isn't Pansy." Clarisse snarls. Percy's eyebrow twitches with annoyance.

"It's Percy, Dung Head. PER-CY. Sheesh, even I'm not that stupid." Clarisse and two of her half-brothers charge at Percy. Sidestepping into the river, Percy feels the pain of his new cut slowly disappearing. Not giving it a second thought, he parries Ares brunt #2 and spins around just in time to smash his sword into Clarisse's spear. The shaft splinters and breaks, forcing its owner to stumble back.

"What...that was my only electric spear, you DUNCE!" Clarisse screeches. Stumbling up, she points at him with her dagger. "You are going to regret the day that you were born, Punk." Suddenly, Luke bursts from the trees, running pell-mell towards the creek. An arrow pierces the gap between his shin guards and his sneakers, causing him to tumble and fall. Annabeth rips off her invisibility cap and sprints the last part to the creek as all of her companions fall to well-aimed arrows.

Cheers explode from the blue team as the banner changes from a blood-red to a shimmering grey. Althea jumps down from the trees where she and her brother Will Solace and Michael Yew had hidden. Percy grins and is about to step out of the lake when a growl comes from behind him. McKenna, the only other person from the attack squad who came out of the rain of arrows unscathed, runs towards him. "Percy! Look out!" Whirling around, he barely has time to jump aside before a monstrous dog lands where he was seconds ago. He arm stings like mad as he stumbles through the grass towards his friends. McKenna grabs his arm and pushes him behind her as Althea, Michael, and Will fire five arrows each into the thing before it disintegrates into dust. "Percy, can you hear me?" McKenna asks softly. Percy nods slowly, his vision fading. "Percy, step into the lake. Chiron watch this." Everyone holds their breath as McKenna leads Percy into the water once more. The water swirls happily around his feet and the gashes in his arm shrinks and disappears. Percy's face turns red as he hears everyone gasp. Then, he realizes that they are all looking at something above his head. Looking up, he sees the symbol of a trident beginning to fade. Chiron speaks up.

"All hail, Perseus Jackson, son of Poseidon."


	5. Chapter 5

**I do not own Percy Jackson, Riordan does. Oh, and just a warning to all Annabeth lovers, she and McKenna hate and I mean hate, each other. Annabeth is going to be pretty mean in this story. If you don't like it, don't read.**

Chapter 5: The Quest

Percy sighs sadly from his perch on his new bed in cabin three. He looks up at the tall, cold statue of his father. For some reason, Percy knows that his father isn't the strictest guy on the planet by far. A knock comes from the door, catching him by surprise. Ever since he moved here last night, everyone's been peeping through the windows, but no one has actually knocked. Standing up, Percy walks to the door. Annabeth, McKenna, and Althea all stand waiting for him. Luke stands a bit to the side but is also there. "G-guys! Wha..."

"Are you going to stand there and gawk, or are you going to eat breakfast with us, Seaweed Brain?" asks Annabeth teasingly. Percy blushes and chokes down his surprise and happily walks off with his friends.

"So Perce, wanna spar some time?" Luke asks casually, his hands behind his head. Percy shrugs.

"Sure, I've got nothing to do today." McKenna groans loudly, causing Althea to snicker.

"You are SO LUCKY! I've got classes I have to go to." McKenna grumbles. Percy snorts.

"What kind of daughter of Athena are you?" he asks jokingly. Sadly, McKenna looks really hurt, and unknown to Percy, Annabeth is nodding her approval behind him while Luke hides a sly smirk unsuccessfully.

"One that isn't on a pedestal flaunting their brain like Aphrodite does her clothes." Althea growls defensively, her brown eyes flashes brightly. "Unlike SOME people." she says, throwing a meaningful glance at Annabeth before dragging McKenna off to the Apollo table. Chiron sighs but says nothing. Percy frowns confused.

"Did I say something wrong?" he asks worriedly. "I was just kidding." Luke shrugs as Annabeth answers.

"We've told you not to hang out with them. They are unpredictable and bad luck." she says before walking to the Athena table. As Luke pats him on the back and leaves, Percy sits down alone at the Poseidon table.

"I guess the children of Athena aren't so smart after all." Percy mutters under his breath. "Bad luck? As if."

After breakfast, Percy is called to the Big House. He slowly opens the door, not wanting to give Mr. D a reason to turn him into a turtle or something like that. "Hurry up, Peter." Mr. D mutters irritably. Percy frowns.

"It's Percy, Sir." he says when Chiron walks up to him in centaur form.

"Percy, come with me." Chiron says, leading him down a hallway. "Percy, there is a problem up on Olympus." Percy didn't like the sound of that. "Zeus's master bolt has been stolen, and he demands that it be returned by the summer solstice or there will be blood." Percy nods, not understanding how it applies to him. Zeus is not his father.

"How does this have anything to do with me?" Percy asks, voicing his thoughts.

"Percy, Zeus doesn't trust your father, and he believes that you have taken it."

"WHAT!" Percy shouts, causing all the water fixtures in the house to quiver and groan.

"Calm down, Percy, before you flood the place." Chiron says calmly, watching the young demigod. "Now, Percy. In the attic upstairs in the Oracle of Delphi. She will tell you what you are supposed to do."

"Isn't she supposed to be dead?" Percy asks, though he could guess the answer.

"Yes, and she is." replies Chiron. Okay, maybe he couldn't guess the answer. "There is a corpse of the last oracle who lived in the 1940s, but the spirit of prophecy is still there." Percy nods slowly, not really wanting to see a corpse, but Chiron gently pushes him up the stairs. Taking a deep breath, Percy climbs up and gazes around. Dozens of war trophies are all around the attic, but in the corner is a withered, black with age-old woman with beaded necklaces and flowing clothes.

"Oh, stink." Percy mutters under his breath as he cautiously makes his way towards the oracle. Suddenly, the mouth falls open, and a green, foul-smelling gas comes out of her mouth. Percy leaps back and covers his mouth with the sleeve of his hoody.

"Come forward and speak, young half-blood." the voice rasps out from the long dead throat. Percy looks around slowly and takes a few steps forward. Letting his arm fall to his side, he states loud and clear, "What is my quest?"

"You will go west, and face thee god who has turned

You will find what is lost and see it safely returned.

You will be betrayed by one who calls you a friend

You will fail to save what is most important in the end."

The corpse becomes inanimate and dead once more as Percy makes his way down the stairs. Voices can be heard screeching from the living room. "I'm going with him!"

"You could care less about his safety! You just want to go on a stupid quest!"

"If it's so stupid, why do you want to go?"

"Because my best friend die because of our uncle!"

"As if! You just want attention! You're jealous because I'm the head of the Athena cabin and you're not!"

"You only got picked because you were here longer!"

"Yeah, and Mom loves me more!"

"She does not!"

"Yes she does! You're just bad luck! You couldn't keep a daughter of Apollo safe. How can you keep Percy safe if you can't even do that?"

There's no reply.

"Hah! I knew it. Just go back to your cabin. You're not strong enough for a quest yet." Annabeth snarls.

McKenna looks like she wants to cry and rearrange Annabeth's face at the same time. "Your pride will be your downfall, Annebeth. Mark my words. One day, you will lose something that you want because of that pride."

"Annabeth, McKenna? What's going on?" Percy asks concerned as he glances back and forth from the two sisters, both looking murderous.

"McKenna's being a baby. That's all." Annabeth says, waving her hand dismissively. "What did the oracle say?" Percy ignores her and steps towards McKenna, who's staring at her toes.

"Kenna, are you okay?" he asks, using the new-found nickname for her. She stiffens and turns stiffly away.

"I'm sorry, Percy. I'm just bad luck. Go on your quest and forget about me." she mutters softly under her breath before disappearing out of the big house. Percy looks helplessly around the room. Annabeth snorts rudely at her sister's actions while Grover and Chiron look very guilty. Percy sighs and sinks into his chair. What has he gotten himself into?


	6. Chapter 6

**I do not own Percy Jackson.**

Chapter 6: Sneaking Out

A silent shadow flits across the ground as its owner cautiously makes her way through the maze of buildings. She stumbles for a split second in front of the Poseidon cabin before making her way to the rendezvous point in the forest. As she draws near, a light covers her eyes, making her freeze. "Calm down. I'm just giving you night vision." Althea says, stepping out from behind a tall oak.

"Last time I checked, Apollo's the Sun god." McKenna grumbles.

"He is also the god of health and medicine." her sister replies as McKenna turns a slow circle, blinking like an owl. "What you're seeing is the living organisms in the area."

"Sweet." McKenna says, whistling softly. "Solon," she calls. A soft hoot comes from a tree nearby, and a majestic grey owl lands on McKenna's outstretched arm. "Lead us out of here." Solon hoots and takes flight before his master turns to Althea. "Is Ember distracting the harpies?" Althea nods as a massive tiger slinks over to them. Sol and Tempest had been told to sneak out of their stalls/cages that morning for the escape. "Good, let's ride." McKenna replies, turning to Tempest, her pegasus. Earlier that day, Percy, Annabeth, and Grover had left on their quest. Althea and McKenna refused to be left out and made a plan to sneak out of camp.

"Are you sure this plan will work?" Althea whispers to McKenna tensely.

"I'm a daughter of Athena. It will work. I even got my mother's blessing on this." Althea raises her eyebrow.

"How did you convince her to let you rescue a son of Poseidon?" McKenna blushes.

"Well, I'm just supposed to make sure Annabeth doesn't get hurt." she says somewhat bitterly. Althea gives her a sympatric smile, and the two sisters disappear into the night in silence. They leave the borders without incident and are soon joined by a bedraggled falcon. Althea gently patches up Ember as they leave Camp Half-Blood in the dust.

The due travels through the night, guided by Solon and a small flame made by Althea. They leave the borders of New York and slip unnoticed into Pennsylvania. They slide to a stop in front of a simple but stately home. Before they could even dismount, a tall brown-haired electric blue-eyed man rushes out of meet them. "McKenna!" he shouts running down the driveway. His eyes as he sees his eldest daughter who he thought was dead. "Althea..." he whispers before picking her up in his arms. "Oh, Althea, my sweet little girl. I thought I lost you. I thought I lost you." he gasps, holding her close. He opens his arms and pulls McKenna into an embrace as well.

"Dad, we ran away from Camp." Althea whispers mournfully.

"We're sorry." McKenna adds. Mr. Brooks shakes his head kindly and places a kiss on his daughters' foreheads.

"You're both alive and well. That's all I could ask for." he says, standing. "Let's put the animals in the barn before coming in."

When the small family is seated around a small table, Althea and McKenna gratefully munch on the small snack that their father had given them. Traveling had made them very hungry. "Father," Althea says softly, causing Mr. Brooks to flinch. Whenever Althea's formal, bad news always follows. "We're leaving on a quest. We can't stay here. We'll just put you in danger." Mr. Brooks eyes flash.

"I am an experienced black belt fourth degree in Tai Kwon Do. I can fence and shoot a bow or gun with good accuracy. I also know knife defense and can throw a spear. Our family doesn't have to be broken." he replies sternly, not wanting to lose his beloved girls again.

"Father," Althea says, her eyes brimming with tears. "I'm supposed to be dead and in the realm of Hades, but I'm not. I've defied one of the most powerful gods on Olympus. Hades will be after me."

"So true, young one." Mr. Brooks, Althea, and McKenna jump up and pull out their weapons. There in the door way is Alecto, a Kindly one.

"Oh, snap." McKenna groans before charging forward with her sword, as Althea fires celestial bronze arrows at the Fury. Mr. Brooks surprises them all by blasting a celestial bronze bullet into Alecto's shoulder. The Fury shrieks in pain but refuses to go to Tartarus. Hissing, she pulls McKenna in front of her.

"Shoot me, and your pretty little owl dies." Alecto hisses. McKenna growls and tries to free herself from Alecto's burning grip, but it's unless. Mr. Brooks lowers his gun, and Althea drops her bow. In a blink of an eye, Alecto lunges at Althea, but Mr. Brooks jumps in the way. Screaming in frustration, Alecto drags Mr. Brooks with her. "If you want to see your father again, trade your life for his, daughter of Apollo. I'll be waiting in the palace of Hades." With a menacing cackle, Alecto disappears in a cloud of black smoke and raven feathers.

"Dad!" McKenna shouts, trying to grab the Fury from behind but is a second too late.

"He's gone." Althea whispers sinking to her knees. "He...he's gone...and...and I-it's all my fault." she stutters, tears falling from her cheeks, staining the carpet. McKenna gently pulls her sister into a hug.

"Shh, I know this is hard, but we've got protect Percy. He's going to the Underworld anyway so we can save Dad while we're on the quest." McKenna whispers softly, running her fingers through Althea's black hair.

"Th-thank you."

"So what, Squirt." McKenna asks, smiling slightly. Althea looks up at her and smiles as well.

"For always looking out for me even though I'm not really your sister." McKenna shrugs.

"I love you like a sister, and that's what counts." The two of them get up and quickly get their animals, hoping to catch up with Percy as soon as possible.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7: Mastering Medusa

"Percy! Percy!" Grover screams holding his crutches in hand and running with a goat's gait.

"Grover?" Percy murmurs, looking up from the fountain that he was looking at. "Grover!" he shouts, sprinting through the maze of statues in Aunty M's Garden Emporium. "Grover!" he shouts, sprinting passed at statue of a young couple clinging to each other. "Stupid creepy statues." Percy mutters, not looking where he is going.

Bam! Percy and Grover groan and rub their aching heads. "Percy! Dude, we've got to save Annabeth!"

"W-wait? Save her from what?" Percy asks confused. Grover doesn't give him time to think while they charge on with Grover's nose leading the way.

"M stands for Medusa, Percy! We're all gonna be statues if we don't get out of here!" Grover bleats frantically. The two of them skid to a stop behind Medusa, who in turn whirls around with her snake hair. Annabeth struggles to free her hand from the stone woman's grasp with difficulty.

"Don't look!" she screams, right before Percy and Grover split up, both staring at the ground.

"Percy Jackson...I used to date your daddy." Medusa hisses, sprinting after Percy.

"Stink, stink, stink!" Percy curses under his breath, sending a wave of water from the fountain into Medusa's face. The monster lands flat on her backside, sputtering and cursing angrily. Percy makes a quick left turn but comes to a dead-end. He ducks behind a statue of a man begging for mercy. "Just great." he mutters, shivering under the man's despairing gaze.

"Percy, join me." Medusa says. "It would be a shame to ruin such a pretty face."

"Don't look at her Percy!" Annabeth screams while Grover flies in with the flying shoes that Luke gave Percy.

"Feel the power of my bat, Snack Head!" Grover shouts, smacking Medusa on the back of the head.

"Impudent satyr!" Medusa screeches as Grover dives behind some trees to avoid looking at her eyes.

"Leave him alone!" Percy shouts, staring at the reflection on his sword.

"I second that!" a voice rings through the air. Medusa's head snaps up to look around, but it's too late. McKenna's sword slashes through Medusa's neck, and it's all over. "Whew!" she says, looking at the shocked faces of the others. "That was too close for comfort. Althea, do you have a coat to wrap this thing up in?"

Althea hops down from her perch in a tree and tosses a ragged towel. "I found this thing up in the tree." McKenna wrinkles her nose in disgust.

"Gross, Sis." she says but uses the towel anyways. "Now, Grover, think fast." Grover yelps but quickly catches the flying head.

"Nasty." he says, as the ooze seeps through the towel.

"We'll get another towel before we leave." McKenna says waving her hand dismissively as Percy runs up to her.

"H-how did you get here?" he asks shocked. McKenna grins and lets out a shrill whistle. Tempest and Sol coming bounding down the path with Ember and Solon in hot pursuit. "W-whoa!" he says when Tempest greets him. "Your horse just talked!"

"Actually, that's just you, Lord of Horses." McKenna says with a theatrical bow, not noticing Percy's blush. Annabeth notices though and stomps up to her younger half-sister.

"What are you doing here?" she hisses angrily as Percy and Grover take a huge step backwards. Althea frowns and glares holes in the back of Annabeth's head.

"Saving your hide, dear Sister." McKenna says cheerfully, but the joy doesn't reach her eyes. "Good ol' Mum sent me to make sure you get back to camp alive!" Annabeth grinds her teeth together before snatching the letter from Olympus from her sister's hand. Quickly reading the Ancient Greek, she sighs and stuffs the letter back into McKenna's hands.

"Fine, but don't mess with the plan." McKenna bites back a retort and turns back to Tempest.

"Alright then, shall we be going?" she asks.

"Oh, no. Not Shakespeare." Althea groans climbing on Sol. Grover and Percy climb on into Tempest while Annabeth gets on Sol with Althea. The group of middle schoolers ride off through the states and take a break in a forest in Virginia. Althea starts a fire while Annabeth and Percy set of camp. McKenna and Grover soon return with some food, and they all eat well. As everyone begins to go off to sleep, Annabeth hears part of Althea and McKenna's conversation.

"We've caught up to them, thank goodness." McKenna says.

"Yeah, but we're still so far away from Hades." Althea whispers, sending a shiver down Annabeth's spine.

Why do they want to see Hades for? she wonders, straining her ears to hear.

"Don't worry about it." McKenna assures her. "Once we're in the Underworld, we'll get Dad back, no matter what the cost."

So, you aren't here for Percy's safety, McKenna. Annabeth thinks with a smirk. Why am I not surprised.

"Well, we'd better get some rest. Especially since a certain someone is listening to our conversation." McKenna says coolly, making Annabeth scowl and shift uncomfortably. Before the young Chase could drift off though, she hears her sister's soft voice mutter, "What happened to our friendship?"


	8. Chapter 8

**How many times must I say this? I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians.**

Chapter 8: Getting Directions from a Poodle

"Percy, wake up." Annabeth whispers softly, poking the boy. "Come on, Percy!" she says louder, a bit annoyed. McKenna sighs and kneels next to Percy's head.

"Perseus Jackson, if you don't get up now, no chocolate for a month!"

"Ahhhhhh! I'm up!" Percy screams, bolting upright. McKenna and Annabeth burst out laughing while Percy blinks sleepily. "W-what world am I in? You guys are a-actually getting along." he says around a massive yawn. Annabeth stops laughing and glances at McKenna before walking away. McKenna and Percy sheepishly chuckle and make their way to the others.

"About time you woke up, Percy." Althea says with a smirk. "I was about to give Grover your pancakes." Percy's eyes light up at the sight to the food. He dashes forward at the speed of light and is soon gobbling up every crumb.

"Mmm, where did you get this food?" he asks around another mouthful of pancake.

"Slow down, Seaweed Brain. We can't have you dying from suffocation." Annabeth says grinning. Percy blushes but does slow down to a closer to average eating rate. McKenna frowns at the sly look that Annabeth throws her way.

"Alright, guys. Don't kill each other." Althea says tiredly. "We need to get along on this quest or we'll all die in World War III that will come if we fail." Everyone's faces turn grim at the reminder of the life or death situation that they are in. Althea sighs and flashes a smile. "Hey, don't frown. If we focus on the negatives, we might as well give up since there are tons of them." McKenna nods vigorously.

"That's right! We've got to focus on the positives. We're probably going under the protection of Zeus..."

"What?!" Percy yelps, having finished his breakfast. "What makes you say that?" Annabeth smacks her fist on the palm of her hand.

"Oh! Since we're going on a quest to retrieve the bolt that not even our parents could find, he has to let us go. It's probably the last chance of a search group going out before the deadline." Althea nods.

"Yep, and besides, Zeus has nothing to gain from another World War. The last one caused so much destruction up there and down here."

"So the only reason he's making the threat is to keep all the other gods in line?" Percy asks. McKenna laughs and slaps him on the back.

"Alright! Seaweed brain's finally figured something out!"

"Aw, thanks...Hey!" Everyone laughs as Percy swats at McKenna, only to have her poke him in the side.

"Hahaha! Back to being slow, huh, Percy." Annabeth says smirking. Percy pouts cutely, unaware how uncomfortable he's making McKenna and Annabeth. Suddenly, an ear splitting squeal echoes through the surrounding area, forcing everyone to their knees.

"What in the world?" Althea groans, her ears still ringing from the squeal. Grover jumps up and starts sprint through the woods like it was enchilada day at school.

"Grover!" Percy shouts sprinting off after him.

"Guys!" Althea calls before chasing after them with Annabeth and McKenna.

"Come on! We can't run To a monster! Have you lost your minds!" Annabeth screeches skidding to a halt in front of the biggest pig she has ever seen.

"Whoa...that's a Lot of bacon." McKenna mutters.

"Seriously? That's what you have to say?" Annabeth snaps. McKenna at Annabeth lazily, stunning her sister for a bit.

"Well, if you're nervous, you can just say so instead of snapping at me." she says simply before pulling out her blade. Althea pulls out her bow, but Grover's shout stops them all.

"Wait! Don't show it..." Too late. At the sight of the celestial bronze, the pig goes berserk. Charging off to the side, he drags Percy and Grover along with it. The three girls run pell-mell after the obese swine, but the pig is increasing the gap at in alarming rate.

"We'll never catch up like this." Annabeth gasps. McKenna frowns, glancing around.

"Where are they?" she gasps. Althea glances too looks around but catches a glimpse of what she's looking for.

"Right here." she says, stopping and jumping up. Sol leaps out from behind and catches her on the way down. McKenna does the same with Tempest and drags Annabeth on as well.

"Let's ride! After that pig, Tempest!" McKenna shouts. The three girls begin to speedily catch up to the two boys. After a few minutes they are neck and neck. "Percy! Grover! Hop on!" The boys glance at her, but before they could jump Annabeth screams.

"Cliff!" Both boys freeze in panick.

"You just had to say that." Althea mutters before tying a thin but strong string to her arrow. Taking aim, she sends the arrow into the pig's side.

"That measly arrow's not going to kill it!" Annabeth gasps.

"She's not trying to!" McKenna shouts back over the pig's obnoxious squeals. Sol pounds the bronze peg on the other end of the string down to the ground. Althea fires another arrow, and Tempest pounds that one in. Momentarily halted, Grover and Percy jump off the pig's back.

"Guys! You can't do that! This is a sign from Pan!" Grover yells waving his arms widely at them.

"Grover! That thing tried to jump off a cliff with you and Percy on its back!" Annabeth shouts back. Althea gets in between them, still riding on Sol.

"Calm down guys. The pig could get away any second." At that very moment, the strings snap, and the pig goes tumbling down the cliff pulling the arrows with it.

"Shesh. That's some prophecy Althea." McKenna says smirking. Althea glares at her.

"Oh shut up." she mutters. "We've still got to come up with a way to get across the country" The little troop marches back to their camp site and cleans it up. They then make their way towards a near railway.

"Aw, did you guys really have to kill it?" Grover moans. Althea and McKenna sighs as Percy chuckles sheepishly. Annabeth glares at Grover.

"That thing committed suicide. We tied it down and tried to stop it." she says in a dangerous tone. Grover doesn't hear a word. He rushes toward a pink poodle standing next to a freight train.

"Guys! The poodle says that this train is going to St. Louis. We can hop on the get that much closer to our destination in just a few hours!" says Grover excitedly as he runs back to us. The rest of the group looks at each other than at Grover.

"You want us to take directions from a poodle?" Althea asks.

"Are you insane?" Annabeth cries.

"That might work." McKenna mutters, making everyone turn to her in shock, except Grover who is practically bursting with joy. "I mean, if this train can take us to St. Louis, then so be it. I say we get on the thing and don't question the poodle. Besides, Grover may have downs, but his ups make up for it."

"Thanks so much. McKenna!" Grover says, grinning as wide as possible. Percy shrugs.

"Alright, then. Let's go."

**I received a review from someone (I'm not telling who...'cause I don't know who.) asking if this is a McKennaxPercy fanfic. I'd like to remind the person that they are 12 at the moment. There will be a lot of moments where you will think it's McKennaxPercy. That is because me friend requested it. There will be a sequel...hopefully, and the tables will turn.**


	9. Chapter 9

**I Do Not Own Percy Jackson!**

Chapter 9: Percy Goes Skydiving

The ride inside the train car is relaxing. Percy and the others take a well deserved nap after their exhausting morning. Tempest and Sol, along with Ember and Solon, return to the magic charms that McKenna and Althea wear. "Grover, wake us up in an hour so we can let the animals have some exercise. It's really cramped in the charms." McKenna mutters before yawning loudly. Percy echoes her tired yawn and leans back against the metal wall of the train car. Althea, Annabeth, and Grover nod off as well soon afterwards. The low click clack of the track wheels on the track quickly lull the stowaways into dreamless sleep. Althea and McKenna are jerked awake by a sharp tug on their charms.

"Grover didn't wake us up." Althea mutters groggily releasing the mythical animals. She turns around to see her older sister in a bit of a fix. "Oh my goodness...I so wish I had my camera!" she gasps, trying to keep in her laughs. McKenna glares, though the glare is quite comical with her red face surrounding the glare.

"Shut. Up." she hisses venomously at her sister before glancing down. Percy's head is on her lap, and the said boy is out cold. She tries to nudge Percy to wake him up, but he just shifts and falls back asleep. "Ugh...can you just set them free for me? Please?" McKenna asks weakly, too tired to deal with Percy. Althea smirks but set the animals free anyways.

After a couple of hours, the group is jolted awake by the screeching halt of the train. "Well, I had a nice nap. How about you guys?" Percy asks while stretching. McKenna mutters "No" and refuses to meet his questioning glance as Althea stands behind her sister with her lips pressed together. They all hop off and walk towards the list to trains leaving St. Louis.

"Hm, it says that there's one leaving in about two hours." Althea says glancing around. "Does everyone have the enough money to by a ticket?" Getting nods all around, they all hand their money to Grover who runs off and buys them the tickets. After a lot of begging, they all agree to follow Annabeth to the Gateway Arch.

"Wow! It's a wonder!" Annabeth squeals excitedly. McKenna grins at the massive structure before scowling.

"The structure is beautiful with the smooth arch, but I can't say the same about the water." Percy shakes his head sadly at the murky, stinky mess next to the arch. Even though they were a good 5 yards away, Percy could feel the horrid pollution in the river. He shudders and shakes his head once more.

"You okay, Perce?" Grover asks worriedly. Percy smiles weakly at him.

"I'm fine. The water pollution's getting to me."

"You shouldn't have said that." McKenna mutters to him, a split second before Grover starts ranting about how people to polluting the world and about how Pan's kingdom is shrinking, etc.

"Oops." Percy whispers as he and the girls politely half-listen to Grover's rant as they wait in line to go up into the arch. As they get closer, Percy's stomach twists and flips in uncomfortable directions. "Um...that's a really tall arch." he gasps, gulping hard. McKenna, Althea, Annabeth looks at him concerned, before Annabeth jabs Grover to get him to shut up.

"Yeah, it's 509 feet tall, or about..." McKenna puts a hand over Annabeth's mouth.

"I don't think that helping." she says calmly, tilting her head towards a very green Percy.

"M-Maybe I should just stay down here." replies the sick boy. "I mean, that's pretty far into Zeus's realm, and he hates me...so yeah..." Grover bleats and slings his arm around Percy's shoulders.

"I'll stay down here with you. It smells like underground in there, and I don't like it." Annabeth snorts and grabs both of their arms and drags them towards the elevator of the arch.

"Come on, you big babies!" she grumbles. "You two are supposed to be looking out for us, not vise versa." Grover bleats indignantly while Percy's face turns from green to red with embarrassment. Althea and McKenna march up after them, and soon, they are all looking out the windows of the huge arch.

"Whoa! This is beautiful! The sun is shining on the hills and trees, making them sparkle. You can't see any pollution from up here!" Althea says excitedly. McKenna playfully covers her mouth.

"Whoa! Don't go spouting haikus like your dad now." she says teasingly. Althea sticks out her tongue at her and turns back to the view.

"Wait. You guys have met Apollo before?" Percy asks curiously, secretly hoping that they've seen his dad before too.

"Yep! Apollo is really sweet, but he can be a tad of an air head at time." McKenna says chuckling. The sunlight flares suddenly, making all the half-bloods jump.

"Love you too, Dad!" Althea calls to the noon sun above. "He's a cool dude. He plays awesome music and does pranks with Hermes sometimes. Though, he does flirt a lot." she says after turning back to Percy.

"We've met all the Olympians before." McKenna says grinning.

"What?" Annabeth gasps, very jealous. "How come? Zeus never lets half-bloods around Olympus for that long."

"Althea here is the "Sun child". Basically, she's Apollo's favorite and most powerful kid. That's why her powers are more controlled at her age. Since she's the Sun child, Apollo drags her everywhere and spoils her rotten." McKenna explains. Althea pouts and punches McKenna in the arm.

"I'm not spoiled!" she protests. McKenna and the others snicker slightly except Annabeth who is suspicious about the "Sun child".

"Well, let's get down. We've got half an hour to get back to the train station." she says shortly, walking with the crowd towards the elevator doors. The others follow, but only Annabeth and Grover are able to fit in the elevator.

"You guys go ahead. The three of us will take the next one." Percy says right before the doors close. The three of them glance around. They are the only ones there except for an old lady with a Chihuahua in her purse. Before they could process what's going on, the Chihuahua transforms into a Chimera, a freakish monster with a shake-headed tail, a lion head, and a goat body. The lady turns into Echinda, Mother of all monsters.

"Great...um...yeah, Echinda, buddy...you're not still mad about that one time that we killed your son, Hydra, are you? Or that other time when we killed a dozen of your grandchildren, the hellhounds, right?" asks McKenna nervously. Echinda hisses angrily as her son, Chimera, sends a poisonous acid flying at the demigods.

"Um...that would be a yes." Althea replies as the three of them pull out their weapons.

"You guys made this lady mad?" Percy yelled at them.

"You did too! You killed the Minotaur! That was her kid or grandkid!" Althea yells back, sending an arrow into the Chimera's side. Its snake tail yanks the arrow out while the beast begins to charge. The three of them dive out-of-the-way, but the beast seems to be intent on killing Percy.

"Argh! Why's it only after me?" Percy shouts, cutting the beast's side before having to roll underneath the beast to avoid the incoming acid from the tail.

"You're demigod scent is twice as powerful as ours! You're like a huge piece of bacon!" McKenna shouts, slicing off the creature's tail, only to have it slithers after her angrily. "Aw Come On!" She dives out-of-the-way of a blob of acid while Anne sends an arrow at it, pinning its head to the wall. They both turn to see Percy with his back against the wall. The Chimera roars and charges at him. Althea tosses McKenna her magic rope, and the elder sister lassoes Percy to yank him out-of-the-way.

"Nice one!" Althea says as the wall of the Gateway Arch crumbles. "I hope we don't have to pay for that."

"Focus!" Percy yells, dragging the girl out-of-the-way.

"You know that I can't! ADHD over here!" Althea yells back and embeds an arrow into the beast's shoulder. McKenna grits her teeth and jumps on the thing's back. Without the snake tail, it's back is completely defenseless. Clinging on for dear life, Abby tries to stab it through the neck, only to be shaken. Percy tries to distract the beast, but he only receives a powerful kick in the chest from the Chimera's hind hooves.

"Percy!" McKenna screams, seeing her best friend's body go flying out of the hole made by the Chimera. Angrily, she tosses caution to the wind and lets go of the beast's neck. Gripping her sword, she stabs down, piercing through the Chimera's entire neck.

"Arg!" The Chimera dissolves into a pile of sand. Althea, who had been distracted by the Mother of Monsters, finally is able to drive her dagger into Echinda skull. She pants as the monster is deduced to a

pile of sand before turning to her sister. Nodding once, they rip open the elevator doors and slip on the leather gloves that McKenna had brought. Taking a deep breath, McKenna swings into the shaft and slides down using the rope. Althea quickly follows as many, many, feet disappear in a blink of an eye. Their gloves grow uncomfortably hot by the time they reach the top of the elevator. McKenna pulls out a screwdriver and easily gets the top of the elevator open so they can jump in. After a few minutes, McKenna completely rewires the door so it slides open. They tumble out and sneak pass the police towards the murky river that Percy had fallen into.

"McKenna, Althea!" Grover shouts, running to them with Annabeth not far behind. "Where's Percy?" McKenna and Althea explains the situation as they weave in and out of the crowd, looking for Percy. "Blaaa! Look!" Grover says, awkwardly running up to the edge of the river.

Splash! Grover is drenched waist up with slimy water as Percy comes burst out of the river. "Thanks, man. I really wanted a bath." Grover says sarcastically. The others snicker, but Annabeth and Althea remind them that they are wanted fugitives and need to get going. Sprinting through the crowd, Annabeth tosses Percy her invisibility cap. Slipping it on, Percy runs along with them, avoiding attention.

They barely make it in time to catch their train. Ripping off his hat, Percy and the others quickly show the conductor their tickets and climb aboard. Slumping into their soft chairs thankfully, the four of them drift off to sleep. Ignoring the lights and the rushing people, Percy lets sleep claim him.


	10. Chapter 10

**McKenna: **Whoa! There's a whole story about me! Sweet!

**Annabeth:** You just figured that out?

**Althea: **Oh, and You knew about this before now?

**Annabeth:** *blushes* W-Well...

**SHunter: **Girls, stop it! The chapter needs to begin now! **I do not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians.**

**McKenna: **She just owns my sister and me!

**Althea:** Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 10: We Get Help From Rainbows and Harleys

"Okay, we're in Denver with a week left to get to Hades. What's our next move?" Percy asks as they all sit in McDonald's eating breakfast.

"We need to get Los Angeles." Althea says, shifting her pack on her back.

"Why Los Angeles?" Grover asks.

"It's the entrance to Hades." McKenna says walking along side her sister. She catches the others (excluding Althea) looking at her funny. "What? Althea told me!"

"How do you know where the entrance to the Underworld is?" Asks Annabeth suspiciously. Althea sighs and replies that it's a long story. "We've got time." Annabeth says curtly. Althea sighs and rubs her temples.

"Okay, let's see. I'm actually 14 years old." Althea states, getting confused stares from Annabeth and Grover.

"It's because you were frozen in time, right?" Percy asks, getting a nod from both girls.

"Quite literally, actually. I was flying over Juneau, Alaska when Zeus zaps my plane down, and Boreas seals me up in a glacier, trying to kill me."

"But Sun children can stay alive for long periods of time by going into dormancy." McKenna explains. "They raises their body temperatures to huge levels to stay alive and to signal for help."

"So, since I nearly died in Alaska, I've had a lot of dreams from Thanatos and Hades telling me how close to death I am. It was very depressing, but at least I wasn't alone. Personally, Hades didn't want me to die, so that was his way to keep me fighting."

"So you had dreams of the Underworld? Man, that's creepy." Grover says, shuddering. Althea laughs and nods.

"Totally, Goat Man. Come on. We should find a place to contact camp."

The group of five walk out of McDonald's and into a nearby car wash. Althea turns on the water while McKenna keeps the water going. The mist from the hose creates a rainbow in the rising sun. "O goddess of the rainbow, show me Camp Half Blood!" Annabeth says. The mist ripples as the golden drachmae disappears into it. Camp Half Blood appears before them, and a few seconds later, Luke appears.

"Hey guys!" Luke says smiling, not seeing Althea and McKenna as they lock the water hose into place. "How far are you?" Annabeth doesn't reply and starts playing with her hair while Grover and Percy are glad to talk to another guy.

"We're in Denver now and headed to Los Angeles." Percy says, after a curious glance at a flushed Annabeth.

"Los Angeles? That's where Hades' entrance is?" Grover shrugs.

"That's what I said, Man, but that's where it is."

"How do you know where it is?" Luke asks.

"Althea told us." Percy says, before covering his mouth. No one knew that McKenna and Althea were with them. He mentally smacks himself for his stupidity.

"What!? Th-They're with you?" Luke sputters. McKenna chooses that moment to stick her head into the conversation.

"You bet we are, and if we weren't there, they would be little statues in Medusa's lair." she snaps before dragging Althea out with her.

"W-where are you going?" Percy asks, turning to them.

"I am going to stop that stupid music! That's NOT how my father wants the guitar played." Althea mutters as the two disappear around the corner. Percy turns back to Luke who's thinking hard.

"Percy, don't trust them. They have been acting weird since they got to camp. McKenna is especially unpredictable. She's moody then happy then angry in the course of 5 minutes. Don't go to Los Angeles."

Percy shakes his head. "We're going to Los Angeles. I have no reason not to trust them. Like McKenna said, they saved our lives, and they've been nothing but kind to me. I'm going to trust them." That that moment there's an eery silence from the other stall. The three friends and Luke look at the doorway just as McKenna and Althea walk in, followed by the screeching tires of the car speeding away.

"What did you guys do?" asks Grover. McKenna and Althea grin and shrug.

"We just did some light shows, that's all." McKenna says, sitting down just behind Percy.

"Alright, has the shoes been working for you, Percy?" Luke asks, curiously as well as trying to cover up the awkwardness. Percy flushes, not wanting Luke to know that he gave the shoes to Grover because of his fear of heights.

"There's working fine." Grover replies quickly. McKenna sighs and just absentmindedly plays with Althea's hair while the others discuss pointless stuff. The timer on the hose runs out, and Luke's face disappears.

~*~*~*Annoyed McKenna twitches...Grrrrrr~*~*~*

The demigods make their way down the streets after looking everywhere for a ride to Los Angeles. So far all the rides are too expensive or would take too long. They walk into a diner dejectedly and sit down. "Come on, guys." Grover says trying to cheer them all up. "We're gonna get us some grub, and then we'll hitchhike to Los Angeles."

"That's dangerous, Grover." Annebeth says shortly. "Who can be sure that the driver is a mortal and not a monster?" A roar from a motorcycle comes from outside the diner. All of the people inside look out to see a tall man with bulging muscles climb off the massive vehicle with a leather seat that looked like human skin. He strides into the diner and towers over everyone else. In a flash, the mountain of a man squeezes into the demigods' booth.

"Hey! Waitress! I need to order over here!" the man bellows, causing everyone close to him to wince. The frightened waitress takes the order, and the man gives her a handful of golden drachmaes.

"Ares." McKenna growls. Athena and Ares never got along, and McKenna has never been found of the god of war anyway.

"Scribble and Sparkle. I wish I could say nice to see ya, but it's not." Ares drawls, getting into a stare down with McKenna.

"My name's McKenna, but I'm not surprised that you can't remember it. You're head's thicker than the earth's crust." she sneers back. Althea snorts and nods toward the approaching waitress. McKenna and Ares relax and act normal while they all eat their food.

"So, you two have met before?" Percy asks.

"Unfortunately." Althea replies, munching on her sandwich. "Percy, meet the god of war, Ares."

"So you're Seaweed beard's son, huh." Ares says, looking at him from behind his sunglasses. Percy gulps, seeing the fire burning in his eyes behind the glasses. "Now, you listen to me well. I could careless with there's a war. I'll win obviously, but that's not the point. I need a favor from you, and if you do it, I'll get you a ride straight to Los Angeles. Deal?" Percy frowns.

"How fast is this ride of yours?"

"If you get the job done by 6 tonight, the ride will get you to Los Angeles by 12 tomorrow afternoon."

"What's the job?"

"Oh, you're not as dumb as your father. Maybe hanging out with Athena's girls is doing you some good." Ares says sarcastically. "I need you to pick up my shield from an abandoned water park not too far away. I'll even transport you there."

"Percy, don't trust him." Annabeth says urgently. "He's the god of WAR. He's not known for mercy."

"Do it, Percy."

Percy snaps his head over to McKenna, whose eyes are hid by her hair.

"Well, Scribble, I think that we will get along just fine with you keep acting like this."

"Shut up!" McKenna snaps forcibly. "I only want to get to Hades as quick as possible. If you have a way to do so, then so be it." Ares's face curves in a cruel smile.

"Oh! Are you looking for you, Daddy?" McKenna tenses while Althea grabs the butter knife on the table before stabbing the table between Ares's hands.

"Shut. Up." she hisses, glaring viciously. Ares cackles and shakes his head.

"And why should I?" he asks. "You're beloved Daddy is in the Underworld. Even though Hades himself may not want you to die, he can't ignore the laws of nature." Ares leans in towards Althea. "You're supposed to be dead, Sweetheart, and your daddy either takes your place or cries over your dead body. It's one or the other. You pick." Althea glares and sends a glob of spit at Ares's face. McKenna and Althea then stand up and storm out of the diner calling Ares to transport them to the stupid park. Ares grins and sends the entire group to the park.

~*~*~*~*Ares is an Idiot!~~*~*~*~

Percy, Annabeth, and Grover appear in the water park a bit dazed. Althea and McKenna are nowhere to be seen. "McKenna! Althea! Where are you?" Percy calls, stepping into the park.

"Those traitors! They abandoned us!" Annabeth screeches.

"No, we went to get supplies." McKenna says, walking up to them in new clothes and a brand new backpack on her shoulder. Her eyes are cold and distant, basically impenetrable. She leads them deeper into the park where Althea is stuffing a second backpack full of food. Looking up, she tosses them the clothes next to her.

"the changing rooms are to your left. Once you're done, grab a backpack. We've already filled it up for you." the 10-year-old says shortly.

After a few minutes, the group of 5 are looking around the whole park for a shield. "Hey guys!" Grover shouts. "I found it!" They all rush to him. There is the Tunnel of Love, surrounded by cupids. In the middle of the basin is a small boat. In it is Ares's shield and a pink scarf. Percy carefully slides down the tunnel's steep sides.

"Come on!" he says, holding out his hand to Annabeth. She blushes and follows him down the tunnel. McKenna frowns in slight jealousy but shakes it off, blaming the fumes from Aphrodite's scarf down below. Walking up to the cupid, she fingers a small engraving.

"Hmm, eta...wait...That stands for H! Hephaestus!" She bolts down the side of the tunnel, screaming at the top of her lungs. "Percy, Annabeth! It's a trap!" The two freeze as McKenna approach they. Sadly, Percy's hand brushes against a thin string. A soft click sounds from above as all the cupids create a golden net above them, preventing them from escaping. They all retreat to the boat as soft pattering is heard underneath them. They pull out their weapons just as mechanical spiders come out of the drain.

"Spiders!" Annabeth and McKenna scream. Annabeth drops her dagger and curls up in a ball in the middle of the boat as McKenna clings to Percy for dear life.

"Make them go away!" McKenna wails into Percy's shirt, causing the boy to blush an infinite shade of red. He gently places McKenna next to Annabeth as he feels the familiar tug of the water in the pipes around them.

"Percy! It's counting down till this airs on Olympus!" Grover shouts, trying to make a hole in the threads but only making huge knots. Percy glances around at the cameras surrounding them and wills the water to come forth. That's when the countdown reaches 1.

"Ahhhhhh!" they all scream as the water rushes and sloshes them around. Percy motions for the girls to stand up.

"On my mark," he says.

"No, on My mark!" Annabeth interjects, eager to redeem herself for freaking out. They ride the waves as Percy directs them to the gate. "Wait...now!" The three go sailing over the obstacle as the small ship smashes into the tunnel wall. Grover and Althea fly over to them, slowing their fall. Percy groans and gets up.

"Thank you! Good night!" he shouts as the cameras. The cupid's switch off and become still.

"Grr, Ares knew it was a trap." Annabeth mutters. McKenna sighs and holds out her hand to Percy.

"Thanks a lot, Percy. I owe you...and sorry about earlier." she says blushing. Percy blushes as well and shakes her hand.

"We'll just forget this ever happened." he says with a smile. Althea shakes her head and swings an arm around her sister's shoulders.

"You can, but I won't. Hahaha! Oh, Sis. I'm never going to let you live this down." McKenna groans as she walks away from her giggling sister.


	11. Chapter 11

**Althea:** Where have you been? It's been forever since you last updated!

**McKenna:** Technically, it's only been a few days.

**Althea: **So? With ADHD, that's an eternity!

**SHunter: **I could reveal your most embarrassing thoughts in the story, you know.

**McKenna and Althea:** Please don't.

**SHunter:** That's what I thought.** I do not own Percy Jackson. I only own McKenna and Althea.**

* * *

Chapter 11: Riding With the Animals

"Ares! I'm going to pound you!" McKenna screams loudly as she stomps up to the smirking god of war.

"You looked good on TV." Ares replies. "Aphrodite's all over you two getting together and having kids." Percy and McKenna flush red, while Althea and Grover snicker and Annabeth glares.

"We...are... not a couple!" McKenna shouts, very, very, angry.

"We are only twelve years old!" Percy asks, face still red. Ares shrugs.

"Whatever. Aphrodite's saying this, not me." He holds out his hand, and Percy forcibly shoves the shield onto it. "Anyway, there's your ride, as I promised." Ares says jerking his thumb towards a white truck like vehicle.

"Zee...Soo...Zoo...Argh! Stupid dyslexia!" Percy groans with frustration.

"Kindness International: Human Zoo Transport?" Grover reads questioningly. Ares nods.

"The luggage in here is supposed to go to Los Angeles by tomorrow at noon so you should be able to get there in no time." Before anyone could say anything, Ares is revving his motorcycle and heading out. They sigh, unsure what to do, but the two drivers of the truck walk out the door of the diner, so everyone dives into the truck. They scramble into hiding spaces as they wait for the men to climb into the front.

"So, how about it, Marty? Ready for a long drive?" asks one of them before burping loudly. The girl's scowl in disgust from their hiding places.

"Yeah. We have to bring these animals to their new home as soon as possible." Marty replies mockingly. Grover grits his teeth to keep himself from murdering the two idiots right then and there. The two of them laugh heartily and swagger off to the front. Soon, the truck is moving.

"I...Hate...Them." Grover whispers fiercely, looking at the three cages. There's an albino lion, zebra, and an antelope in separate cages, each one looking extremely depressed. "This isn't kindness or human zoo transport!" he seethes, shaking with anger. The men had purposefully given the wrong food to the wrong animal so with Percy's help, Grover gives each animal a huge helping of the right food. With a series of bleats, he gently calms the animal down while the others clean the animals up a bit. The poor antelope had a balloon tied to its horns that said, "Get Wild!", but Annabeth quickly removes it. McKenna walks up to the zebra and cuts out the sticky gum in its mane while the truck stops at a red light. Anne gently uses her bow to remove the lion's foul smelling blankets and replace them with the truckers' coats that they had carelessly throw in the back.

After they finished, McKenna pulls out double stuffed oreos for them to eat. As the truck rumbles over the road, Althea signs a soft lullaby that puts everyone to sleep before drifting off herself.

~*~*~*~*~Rumble, rumble, rumble~*~*~*~

"Aphrodite!" Poseidon roars, storming literally up to the goddess of love who's gazing at her reflection. He stops mid-stride when he sees Athena standing in front of the goddess, equally annoyed.

"Aphrodite, I demand that you stop this insanity right now. You have pitted both of my daughters against each other for some sea scum!" Athena seethes. Poseidon glares at Athena before turning to Aphrodite, who looks up from her mirror.

"For once, I agree with Athena. Playing with our children's emotions is wrong."

"I'm not doing anything." Aphrodite says sweetly. "Both of Athena's daughters likes your son to some varying degree so I just amplified their feelings just a bit." Athena's eye twitches in annoyance.

"Those feels were of disdain towards Fish Breath's stupid son!"

"Stupid?" Poseidon retorts. "Well, at least my son is down to earth enough to accept help when he needs it! Your daughters are too proud for their own good. Just like you!"

"And they have a right to be! They are MY daughters, born with great wisdom, and they have to be assertive to get anything done with all those foolish kids around!"

"Foolish! For a goddess of wisdom, you're not that wise Athena." Poseidon snaps. Aphrodite giggles and wonders what Poseidon and Athena's kid would look like, after all, opposites attract.

~*~*~*Whaaaaaaaaaatttttt?*~*~*~

From inside the bus, McKenna and Percy sneeze simultaneously. They groan and stretch before waking the others. As they munch on their breakfast of gummy bears and crackers, the truck stops. Immediately, the demigods and their protector scramble into action. Stuffing the last of their food into their month, they use their weapons to free the animals. "Come on. You're free." Grover bleats to them softly. The lion, zebra, and antelope step out of their cages stunned but very happy. Muttering under his breath, Grover chants something before sending the animals bursting through the door.

"What was that?" Percy asks as they slip out of the truck unnoticed.

"A blessing of Pan. It will guarantee that they make it to the wild safely." Grover replies as they slip into the city.

"No, no, no, no!" Annabeth cries, running up to a large sign. "Welcome to Las Vegas! We're in Vegas! That's a state away!" she shouts at McKenna. "This is all your fault!"

"My fault?" McKenna asks with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes! You insisted that we do that job for Ares." Annabeth growls, watching her sister shrug.

"Yes, but I did get us two states closer in just a few hours. All we need to do is find another way to get to Las Angeles." McKenna replies, walking into the busy streets, leaving the others no choice but to follow. So, they all trek down the sidewalks, but soon, as evening begins to come, the streets become unbearably busy, forcing them to move into the alleys.

"Well, well, it looks like we've got some intruders, boys, and a pretty ones too." says a suave voice. Out of the shadows of the narrow alley steps a group of boys probably about 15 so three years older than the demigods. "What are you doing here?" he asks McKenna, who is leading the way. She scowls and glares at the boy.

"I'm not in the mood, Moron. Let us through."

"Ooh! Feisty! Well, we'll just fix that." the dude says, stepping forward. Percy and Grover immediately block his view of McKenna.

"Move your stupid hide, or we will move it for you." Percy growls, surprising his friends and foes.

The leader quickly regains his composure and waves Percy's threat off.

"Look kid. I'm bigger and stronger than you so beat it." the boy snaps. Percy stands his ground and ducks the annoyed boy's punch. McKenna snaps and lungs as the boy angrily. Together, Percy and McKenna reduce the leader into an unconscious heap. His friends quickly flee, and they all move on down the alley. Soon, they find themselves in front of a very large hotel. The flashing lights on its sign show that this is a VERY expensive hotel.

"Lotus Hotel." Grover mutters. Percy steps forward.

"Come on, guys. We've been hunting for a way to get out of here all day. We've got a week and a day left after today. Let's ask the people here if they have a place for us to sleep for free."

"They probably will say no." Annabeth mutters as they follow Percy to the doors.

"It's worth a try. I'm tired and just want to rest." Percy says, opening the doors. Everything inside is like a child's dream come true. There are video games everywhere in the lobby. New or old, the hotel had it all. Pac Man is on one side of the glistening lobby while the X-box Kinect is on the other side.

"Whoa." Grover says gawking. The man at the main desk waves them over cheerfully. The group of kids walk up to him, a little embarrassed at their shabby appearance in such an amazing hotel.

"Welcome to the Lotus Hotel. How may we help you?" asks the man kindly, a little too kindly for Althea. she glances at him suspiciously.

"We need a place to sleep. Do you have a place for us to stay for free?" Percy asks hopefully. the man looks at them with pity.

"Tell you what. I'll let you stay in our of our hotel rooms for free and toss a Lotus Cash Card so you can enjoy yourselves tonight." Everyone is dumb founded by this man's kindness.

"A-Are you sure, Sir?" Annabeth gasps. The man just smiles and hands them five green cards.

"I'm sure. Now here's your room keys." He hands them two keys. "Boys in one room, girls in the other." The friends nod to him after many thank you and quickly make their way up to their rooms.


	12. Chapter 12

**McKenna:** Wow! Two in one day is a new record!

**Shunter:** I've done this before you know.

**McKenna:** Really? When?

**Althea:** I just looked at SHunter's account. It's true. Chapters 6-7 were posted on the same day.

**SHunter**: How did you get on my account?

**Althea:** *grins evilly* I have my ways. **Shunter does not own Percy Jackson. That would be just plain weird.**

* * *

Chapter 12: Lotus Hotel

"Thank you!" Althea calls over her shoulder and munches happily on her double-decker ice cream cone with chocolate sprinkles. As she happily enjoys herself, a boy about McKenna's age sits on the chair next to her and waves at the ice cream man.

"I'll have the usual, Pedro." the boy says, running his hand through his dark locks. Althea raises an eyebrow at him, curious why he is so sad.

"Why are you sad?" she asks innocently. The boy turns his head to her, his midnight eyes locking with her soft brown ones.

"I miss my mom." he whispers softly, looking down. "She's gone...My dad says that if I stay here she'll be happy, but I'm so sad." Althea frowns, a flicker of memory crosses her mind. Her father...

"I have a dad too...He's gone and needs my help." she whispers. "I was supposed to meet him somewhere. I... can't remember where though." She munches on her ice cream cone quietly.

"Well, did you leave by yourself?" the boy asks after thanking Pedro for his massive sundae.

Althea scowls at her ice cream. "My sister came with me, and our friends are here too." She looks up at the boy in front of her when everything suddenly clicks. "We're going to see your dad, Hades!" she exclaims excitedly.

"H-How do you know that my dad's Hades?" her new friend stutters. She looks at him as if he's growing seventeen heads.

"It's obvious." she states. "You have black hair, eyes that seem like bottomless pits, and pale skin. You're wearing black and are rather depressed. No offense, but you kind of scream "Son of Hades"."

He blushes and sends her a playful glare, but it is still pretty intimidating. "Well, what did you remember, Genius?" he retorts sarcastically.

Althea sticks her tongue out at him. "I'm actually a daughter of Apollo. My sister is a daughter of Athena though."

The boy looks at her confused.

"It's a long story. Anyways, I remember everything! We're on a quest and we needed a place to stay and wandered in here!" She stands up and tosses the rest of cone into the trash. She turns to her friend with a grateful smile. "Thank you for making me realize my mission again. Do you want to come with me?" The boy shakes his head.

"I can't. My sister's here, and we can't leave until Dad's friend comes and gets us." Althea sighs but holds out her hand.

"Then, I hope we will meet each other again, even if you're a son of Hades. I'm Althea Brookes." The boy looks at her hand and smiles. He grabs it, his icy cold hand gripping her warm soft one.

"I'm Nico Di Angelo, and I hope we'll be able to play Mythomagic cards together someday." Althea smiles at the name of the old card game and nods. She runs off through the crowd of people in search of her own sister. They had to get out of here.

~*~*~*~*~*~Party, party, party!~~*~*~*~*~*

Percy stands in the arcade section of Lotus hotel, trying to decide want game to play next. Not too far away is Grover, dancing with his goat legs showing in the middle of the dance floor. "Yeah! Go Grover!" he says laughing.

"Percy."

Percy blinks and looks around, trying to find the owner of such a firm voice. "Percy, wake up! Wake up! Look around you." Percy frowns and walks aimlessly around the pinball machine and war games till he sees a boy avidly playing a "French Revolution" pinball game.

"I think I've seen that movie before." Percy mutter softly. The boy doesn't turn his head to him but continues to play.

"I think it's the best movie of the year." he replies, making Percy recoil in shock.

"Wait, of the year? What year?"

"This year." the boy states, finally looking up at him. "1947." Percy exhales sharply and makes a beeline to where Grover is taking a break from dancing.

"Grover! Grover!" Percy calls. Grover turns around to face him while doing a little jig.

"Sup' Perce! I'm having the time of my life! And I'm thinking about proposing to that pretty lady over there...or was it the one over there." Percy grabs a glass of punch and splashes it on Grover's face, toothpick umbrella and all.

"Wake up!" Percy exclaims, waving his hands in front of the satyr's face. "You are a 28-year-old Satyr who's my Protector and needs to get a move on before the Solstice!" Grover blinks slowly and wipes his face off with a towel, as if just waking up from a trance.

"Whoa...Percy, what just happened?"

"We've been brainwashed. Come on. We've got to find the girls."

~*~*~*~*~Looking for McKenna~*~*~*~*

"McKenna! McKenna!" the girl turns her head to see her younger sister shoving her way through the crowd towards her. She quickens her pace, and soon the sisters are face to face. "McKenna we've..."

"Been brainwashed? Yeah, I figured that out when a Percy lookalike tried to kiss me. Let's just say that the dude is going to be in bed for a Long time." Althea snorts and rolls her eyes.

"Well since you're awake, we've got to snap Annabeth out of it." The two of them nod once and start searching for the Athena cabin leader.

"Annabeth!" McKenna calls.

"Annabeth!" Althea calls, as the two of them shoving their way through the crowd. After a few minutes of searching, they finally find her building a digital city where she was the president and McKenna was rotting in prison.

"Well, that's not necessarily flattering." McKenna mutters annoyed as Althea grabs Annabeth by the shoulders.

"Annabeth, large, ugly hairy spiders. They're everywhere!" Annabeth shudders and blinks rapidly.

"Wh-what just happened?" she gasps.

"We're in the lair of the lotus eaters, and we've got to get out." McKenna says, running forward. the girls follow her lead, and soon, they find themselves in their hotel rooms, grabbing their things and stuffing as much supplies in there as possible. As the girls leave their room, they run into Percy and Grover who are just entering theirs.

"Hurry up! We've already lost a ton of time!" Annabeth says urgently. The group of five then find themselves in the lobby area, but there are bellhops, clerks, butlers, maids, and the manager blocking their path. It is ten to five, and the demigods don't have time to fight all of these people. Suddenly, a water balloon smacks a clerk in the head so hard, he tumbles backwards. Then, another splashes down, and another soon follows. The friends look up to see a 12-year-old boy with a bucket filled with water balloons.

"Go! I'll distract them for you!" he calls down to them. Althea smiles up at him.

"Thank you so much Nico!" she calls back up before running out the door.

~*~*~*~*~*~Pant, pant, pant, pant~*~*~*~*~*

The demigods hail a taxi and hurriedly climb in. Annabeth hands the driver her Lotus Cash Card and tells him to drive them to Los Angeles. The driver retorts that he needs to check the card first, and after swiping across his little machine, the infinity symbol appears in red pixels. The man gulps. "I'll get you in Los Angeles lickety split, Your Highness." The man says before flooring the accelerator. Annabeth grins, obviously liking the "Your Highness" part. Althea looks up at the bright flashing sign as they leave Vegas.

"Guys, we've only got two days left before July 22nd."

"What?" Percy and Grover gasp.

"We were stuck in that hotel for nearly a week." McKenna states shaking her head.

"It felt like hours." Grover says, shuddering. Percy nods in agreement as everyone drifts off to sleep.

~*~*~*~*~*Snore...snore...snore...~*~*~*~*~*

"We're here, Your Highness." says the driver three hours later. The tired and aching kids, give him the money he wants and climb out. They slow make their way around the city, trying to find the gate of the Underworld when it begins to pour. Since the smog around the city is so great, the group searches for a place to stay out of the acid rain. In the end, they duck into a store called Crusty's Water Bed Palace.

They sigh in relief to be in a warm building during the storm just as a tall shadow looms over them. They turn to see a tall, muscular brute with yellowing jagged teeth. "Hello! I'm Crusty, the owner of this fine store. let me give you the grand tour." Before they could protest, he's already leading them away from the door and deeper into the store.


	13. Chapter 13

**McKenna:** You are late!

**Shunter:** :o( I'm sorry! Blame biology mid-term and test!

**Althea:** Wait, you have a mid-term now?

**Shunter:** Yeah, my teacher gives 4 exams per year.

**McKenna:** That dude sucks.

**Shunter:** Actually, he's super funny, so I don't really mind.

**Althea:** Still, a test right after an exam?

**Shunter:** *shrugs* He's a strict teacher.

**McKenna:** **Shunter does not own Percy Jackson and the Olympians.**

**Shunter:** What she said.

* * *

Chapter 13: The Underworld

"Um, sir, it's really fine. We just needed to get out of the rain. That's all." McKenna says, waving her hands in front of her face. "We'll be going now."

"No, no, no! I insist that you have a look around my store. Then, I'll give you some food, alright?"

"Food sounds nice." Percy and Grover say at the same time, causing the girls to glare viciously at them.

"Do you always think about food?" Annabeth snaps, trying to squirm out of the dude's grip as he pushes her onto a soft water-bed.

"It's alright! They're growing boys. It's not a crime to want to eat!" Crusty says happily, showing Althea and McKenna to a bunk bed. "Go on, try it out."

"N-no thanks." McKenna says, stepping away from the bed.

"Don't be shy." Crusty says, heaving McKenna on before plopping Althea down on the bottom. The girls shift in their very comfortable beds, getting rather drowsy. Grover sits on the edge of a soft fluffy bed before Crusty rushes over, and soon, has him tucked in.

"These message you?" Percy asks incredulously. Crusty grins and snaps his chubby fingers.

"Ergo!" Ropes lash out from under the bed and strap Percy's friends down, stretching them.

"Argh! I knew this was a trap!" Annabeth groans.

"If you did, why didn't you gut the stupid dude?" McKenna snaps back, her arms burning. Althea endures the pain quietly, glaring holes into Crusty's pungent ugly face.

"Blaaaaahhhh!" Grover bleats miserably.

"What's...you..." Percy whispers, looking up at the sadistically grinning man. "You're not a man at all...You're Procustus, the monster Theseus killed." Crusty's smiles sours, and the ropes pull on the other demigods harder, making them howl in pain.

"I hated that dude. Anyways, time for you to get on a bed too." he says with a humorless smile. Percy gulps and steps aside, pointing at sign.

"Is it true that all of your beds can be an exact fit for Anybody?" Crusty smiles proudly.

"Of course!"

"But, it doesn't fit my friends."

"That's why the ropes are stretching them. They'll fit soon enough."

"Percy! Shut up and save us already!" Annabeth screams.

"Don't mind her. She's always nagging me about stuff." Percy says offhandedly. The others, if they weren't in so much pain, would've snickered.

"I know right? My mother, who is in Tartarus at the moment, was such a nag. That's why I left home and started this business."

"I feel for you man." Percy replies patting the guy's arm, while slipping Riptide out of his pocket. "Anyways, does this bed fit at HUGE, awesome guy like you?"

"Well, yea! The sign does say anybody." Crusty replies proudly.

"Oh, cause I have a tall guy who sure looks tired, and he'd like a bed his size." Crusty grins hungrily.

"Why don't you scurry off to get that friend of yours?" he asks sweetly. Percy shakes his head.

"No, I need to pick out the bed first." he says walks over to a huge bed. "Could you get on this so I can see if it fits him?" Crusty lies down quickly, not realizing that this is a repeat of history. "Hmm, it's a bit too small. Ergo!" The ropes strap Crusty down firmly, despite all of his struggles.

"H-hey! I-I'll give you a free bed and a bag of drachmaes if you let me go!"

"Get ride of the extras." Percy says before slicing off Crusty's head, reducing him to a fine dust. Then, he cuts the ropes on his friends.

"Next time, hurry up." Annabeth says, scowling.

"Hey, at least he got us out. Good job Percy." McKenna says smiling.

"Hey Annabeth, you look taller." Percy says teasingly, causing the others to laugh before turning to Grover who's at Crusty's desk.

"Hey, guys. Check it out! It looks like Crusty's been visiting his nag of a mom!" They all crowded around Grover who holds the map of Los Angeles. Just two blocks from here is an abandoned Radio station. There is the entrance to Hades.

~*~*~*~**~Whoooo Whooo! We've found Hades hideout!~*~*~*~*~*~

"Who are you?" asks a tall pale-faced man from behind the counter. Percy and the rest of the gang are standing in front of the desk in the midst of the ghosts wanting entrance.

"We're dead." Percy replies Percy dumbly, earning a jab from Annabeth.

"Oh? All of you?" asks Charon suspiciously.

"Yeah, we uh..." Percy stutters.

"We all died in the earthquake along the easy coast." Althea interjects. The dude narrows his eyes suspiciously.

"There weren't any casualties, Demigod." he hisses. "Only the dead can come here, so die and come back."

"We won't "die and come back."" Grover mutters, but Percy quickly pulls out the bag of drachmaes from Ares.

"Charon, you seem...overworked." Percy says softly. "You really should deserve a raise." He places ten gold coins on the counter. Charon eyes them greedily.

"It'll take more than that to convince me." he says weakly, already starting to crumble before the gold. Percy smiles and places another coin on the neat stack.

"Hades should pay you more for all the hard work you do." Another coin on the pile. Charon snorts, not taking his eyes off the gold.

"I've been asking for a raise for weeks, but he's always too busy with "paperwork". Bah!" Percy puts two more on the stack.

"If you let us in, all this gold with be yours." Another coin pops onto the pile.

"We'll even talk to Hades about your raise when we're down there." McKenna adds, smiling innocently. Charon seems very convinced and quickly swipes the cash from the counter.

"Follow me." he says stiffly. He leads them to an elevator which takes them down deep into the ground. Soon, the elevator stops and they all step out into the Underworld.

"This place seriously needs an interior decorator." Grover says, skirting around a pile of skulls. "It's too depressing in here."

"It's the Underworld for crying out loud!" Althea shouts, getting very nervous at being so close to Hades.

"Since when did Miss Calm Sunshine get so snappy?" Grover retorts, staring back at her but finds out that she's not even paying attention. "Hey! Don't ignore me."

"I can't find, Dad." she says worriedly, causing everyone else, excluding McKenna, to freeze.

"I haven't seen him either." McKenna replies while Charon walks up behind them.

"You'd better not try to sneak him out of here." he warns, his eyes flaring.

"We're here for an exchange." Althea says, not waiting for McKenna to answer. "My life for his." Charon mouth curls upward.

"Oh! You're that girl that's caused a lot of paperwork!" he crows delightedly. "Oh, Hades will give me a raise for sure since I let you in...But you're still going to mention my raise anyway." Charon adds, ushering them excitedly into a long wooden boat.

Soon, they are sailing through the river Styx, watching the faces of humans disappear and reappear in the dark, murky depths. McKenna turns to Althea to say something to see her sister's form flickering in and out of solidity. "Althea!" she gasps, grabbing her arm. Thankfully it's solid.

"I'm okay." Althea says, her voice light and airy. The group rush off of the boat and sprint to the palace of Hades. Sadly, there's a long line of those who want to enter too. Charon, really, really, wanting his raise, parts the waters so they could walk to the black tower of obsidian with ease. They pass by Cerberus who glares at them but does nothing. Charon disappears when they step onto Hades's front porch.

"Well, we're here." Percy whispers. "Hang on, Mom."

"We're almost there, Dad. Please wait just a bit longer." McKenna murmurs softly.

~*~*~*~*~*Dun, dun, Duuuunnnn~*~*~*~*

"Nephew." Hades says coolly, looking down at Percy before turning his gaze to Althea. "Pest." McKenna bristles.

"Hey! She...mnph!" Althea slaps her hand over McKenna's mouth.

"Hm." Hades says, disinterested. "Tell Percy. Why are you here?"

"I'm here to get my mom back. I don't have the bolt, and I thought that when you knew you'd let my mom go and call off the war." Percy says, looking around for his mother.

"You think that I Want a war of the gods?" Hades asks, his voice dangerously low. "Did you not See that line in front of my palace? Human wars have clogged up so many entry lines, I've had to open new ones." He pinches the bridge of his nose in frustration and looks at them with tired sad eyes. Then, it hits Althea harder than a full speed chariot.

"Nico." she whispers, making Hades stiffen. "H-He's your son!" Hades glares at Althea murderously.

"And where did you get that idea?" he asks, his body practically seeping with anger.

"I met him in the Lotus Hotel. He helped me snap out of the trance...He misses you." Hades's cold look softens but not much. He turns back to Percy.

"Percy Jackson, the reason I took your mother is because you have something of mine. Give me my helm of darkness." Percy looks confused.

"I don't have it. I don't even know what it looks like." Percy protests. "I swear on the river Styx that I don't have it!" Thunder booms overhead as Hades growls.

"Then, who has it?" Hades booms. Percy shakes his head.

"I don't know!" he shouts over the rumbling of the earth. Skeletal guards surround them in Hades anger. Percy's eyes widen as the golden orb next to Hades's throne shatters on the floor, revealing his mother. "Mom!" He tries to step forward, but Annabeth pulls him back. He looks at his mom helplessly, knowing that he only has three of his father's pearls. The last line of the prophecy echoes in his mind. "You will fail to save what is most important in the end." He glances at McKenna, who seems to read his mind.

"Go, Percy. Take the others and go. Althea and I will be fine."

"But..." Percy begins.

"Percy!" Hades roars. Gulping, Percy, Annabeth, and Grover take out their pearls and step on them. A soft mist surrounds them and carries them all through the stony roof of the palace and through the ground to the sea above.


	14. Chapter 14

**McKenna: **It's about time you came back!

**SHunter: **Is that the only thing you can say to me?"

**McKenna:** No, but it's a good starting point.

**Shunter:** Ok...Anyways, where's your sister?

**McKenna:** I can't tell! It'll ruin the chapter! You of all people should know that.

**Shunter:** *smacks her forehead* Oops. Sorry about that. I think my brain is half asleep at this moment.

**McKenna:** But it's only 2:00 p.m.

**Shunter:** Nevermind. **I don't own Percy Jackson and the Olympians. Rick Riordan does. ** Enjoy the chapter, and sorry for the long wait.

* * *

Chapter 14: The Deal

"Uncle, please calm down." Althea pleads with her angry uncle but to no avail.

"Alecto!" he roars. In a few seconds, the leader of the Kindly Ones zooms into the throne room.

"Yes, my king?" she asks, her voice like nails on a chalkboard. Althea and McKenna flinch at the horrid tone.

"Take these two to spare rooms until I'm ready to see them."

"Yes sire." Alecto replies, extending a clawed hand towards the girls.

"Wait! I need to ask Lord Hades something." Althea says. "It'll only be but a second." she quickly adds after Alecto gives her a withering look. Hades grumbles and leans down for the short girl to whisper into his ear. His midnight eyes widen slightly, but he does nod and let the girls be lead off afterwards.

"What did you say to Hades?" McKenna asks quietly.

"LORD Hades." Alecto interjects, hissing. McKenna sticks her tongue out at Alecto before turning to her sister.

"It's something private. Besides, I promise that we'll get Dad back without me dying." Althea says firmly.

"You figured out a loophole?"

"I'm not gonna say any more since Alecto's right there." Althea replies with a tight-lipped smile.

"Grr..." Alecto growls, roughly shoving them into their rooms.

"I wonder what Percy is doing right now." McKenna mutters while taking off her shoes. Althea smirks and winks playfully at her.

"ONLY Percy?" she asks innocently, causing her older sister to glare viciously at her.

"Shut. It." Althea shrugs and tosses the expensive feather pillow at her. McKenna catches it and tosses it back. Soon, all out pillow war has been declared, and soon, both sisters are tired out. They both sink into the black covers thankfully and drift off to sleep.

~*~*~*~**~SNORE...SNORE...SNORE~*~*~*~*~*

"Wake up."

"Ugh."

"Wake up!"

"Hm?" Althea mumbles, sitting up. She sees Alecto hovering over her bed menacingly.

"Lord Hades will see you now." she whispers. Althea glances over at her sister sadly, seeing that she's fast asleep, she slips out of bed and walk through the palace barefoot. Alecto opens the large obsidian door for her and quietly closes it behind her. Althea stands quietly at the door, watching Hades do a mound of paper work at a desk that is now in front of his throne.

"Come forward." he says, not looking up from his stack of papers. Althea takes a deep breath and walks to him, fists clenched.

"My lord, Hades." she says softly, kneeling before him. He waves her up and makes an ornate black chair appear in front of him for her to sit on.

"What is this plan of yours?" he asks, getting right to the point.

"If you let my father and sister go back home, I'll stay here to help you with the paperwork problem for as long as there is problems. I'll even return on call to help with a jam."

"How are you so sure that your plan will work?" Hades counters cautiously. Althea shrugs.

"I can't be sure, but I can always hope that Nike smiles on me today." Hades snorts.

"Why are you so willing to help me? Most wouldn't allow themselves to be tied to my beck and call."

"Because, you aren't such a bad guy." Althea says. "You love your kids so much that you went through painfully detailed measures to make sure that Zeus never finds them. You seem evil, but your system of the dead shows that you truly want to make sure that every person gets their just deserts." Hades stares at her, his face unreadable. After a few awkward moments, Hades finally speaks.

"You have a deal." Althea breaks out in a smile. "You'll be staying here with me when your family leaves tomorrow."

"NO!"

~*~*~*~*~*Rewind time for about two minutes.~*~*~*~*~*~*

McKenna groans softly, her throat incredibly dry. Frowning, she sits up in her bed and glances over to see if she has awoken her sister. Seeing the covers drawn over Althea's entire form, McKenna smiles and goes over to pull the covers back to make sure Althea has plenty of air to breath. Her fingers curl around the blanket and pulls it back. She gasps as she doesn't see her sister but just a group of pillows. Gulping down her shock, fear, and annoyance, McKenna sneaks out of her room and towards the throne room once more. She ducks behind a large cool pillar to hide from Alecto and realizes that if anybody walks into her room, they'll know that she's gone. She didn't make a decoy like Althea did. Growling under her breath, she slips across the hallway and presses her ear against the throne room door. "How can you be so sure that your plan will work?" asks Hades. McKenna stiffens, listening closely.

"I can't be sure, but I can always hope that Nike smiles on me today." Althea replies, causing McKenna to roll her eyes. Althea loves to be the hero and is really optimistic.

"Why are you so willing to help me? Most wouldn't allow themselves to be tied to my beck and call."

"Because, you aren't such a bad guy." Althea says. "You love your kids so much that you went through painfully detailed measures to make sure that Zeus never finds them. You seem evil, but your system of the dead shows that you truly want to make sure that every person gets their just deserts." McKenna blinks in surprise at Althea relies but thinks it through briefly and agrees with her. Hades doesn't seem like such a bad guy.

"You have a deal. You'll be staying here with me when your family leaves tomorrow." McKenna's blood runs cold at the words. No. This can't be happening. No, no, no! Althea's supposed to go with them! Unable to take it anymore, she flings the double doors open and rushes in, surprising both her sister and the god of the underworld.

"NO!" she screeches, skidding to a halt at Hades' throne which is devoid of the desk that once was there. "Althea, you can't just give up your life. You've got to go home with us." she gasps before turning and glaring at Hades. "Don't you dare lay a finger on my baby sister you...you...prat!" Hades's mouth twitches upward at the British insult. "Sie dummer Idiot Idiot... εσείς πονηρός διάβολος!" (Translation: You stupid idiot moron (in German)...You sly devil!(Greek))

"My, insults in two different languages. You must mean business." Hades drawls. McKenna twitches and is about to unleash another string of multilingual insults when Hades cuts her off. "I don't plan on exchanging your sister's soul for you fathers. I'm planning to have her work as my secretary till this jam is cleared up. Then, she'll go back home till the next jam appears."

"But...don't these jams take a long time to solve?" McKenna asks, incredulously.

"Only when the ghosts are impatient. If they are entertained by lights or music, everything will go quite smoothly." Hades says calmly. "They won't last for more than a year."

"A-A YEAR!" McKenna sputters. "B-but..."

"It's either this, or I die, McKenna. I'll be okay." Althea says softly. McKenna whirls around and glares at her, causing her to flinch in surprise.

"You...You just planned all this without telling me? What kind of sister are you?"

"The kind who wants you to have the best possible life there is." Althea says quietly. McKenna would have none of it.

"Did you EVER think that I happy WITH you with me? Have you even thought that I'm content when the WHOLE family's together? Huh?" she fumes.

"I know that you don't like it, but a year without me is better than never." Althea snaps back, getting frustrated. McKenna returns the glare.

"Well, if you had told me, we could have figured something out or snuck off." she growls. Hades raises an eyebrow at this.

"You seriously think you could sneak out with a ghost without MY permission? I highly doubt it. Besides, you don't know where your father is." he says coolly.

"Κλείστε αυτό." (Shut it. (Greek)) McKenna hisses, not wanting to admit she's being silly.

"Your fatal flaw is your pride, McKenna, just like your sister, Annabeth." Hades continues. "I will transport you straight to Half Blood Hill with your father on the morning of the solstice. By that time, Percy should be back...if he succeeds."

"Don't underestimate Percy." both sisters tell him at the same time. He smirks slightly at this and shrugs.

"Very well."

~*~*~*~*Whistle, whistle, whistle~*~*~*~*

"DAD!" McKenna shouts, hugging her father as Alecto leads him out of the dungeons. Other than looking very tired and shaggy, Mr. Brooks is fine.

"McKenna...I'm glad you're okay. Where's Althea?" he asks, worriedly.

"Right here, Dad." Althea replies, standing next to Hades. Mr. Brooks pales at the god of the Underworld. He steps forward and hugs his daughter gently.

"You don't have to do this sweetie." he whispers, not knowing the real plan.

"I'm not leaving you, Dad. I'm just staying here as Hades's assistant for a year before coming home." Mr. Brooks pulls away from his daughter and stares at her shocked.

"You mean..." Athlea nods and smiles.

"That's right! I'm not going to die! We'll be a family again within a year!"


End file.
